Bail was set at $500, and after posting it, Worthy was released. He rushed to the arena and made it just in time for the second quarter, to the surprise of his team. The Lakers thought he’d fly back to Los Angeles, instead of just racing to the Arena. But since he was there, the Lakers obviously played their star. Worthy ran onto the court with 11:23 to play in the 2nd quarter, and the crowd cheered loudly. After the game, Worthy’s teammate Magic Johnson told the media:
“I heard the crowd, we all looked. There he was. It was beautiful. It was great of them to give him that ovation. That meant a lot. Whatever happened, we’re not concerned with. He’s here. He played. He showed us a lot. He showed how much he cares about us. Everybody makes a mistake in their life but, hey, he’s our boy. I still love him, no matter what he did. I just hope everybody can forget it and rally behind him like this crowd.”
After initially not talking to members of the media, Worthy changed his mind and told the Los Angeles Times:
“They’re the guys I’m with the most. They’re the guys who know me best. Any signs like that–I kinda expected it. These are my friends and . . . it happened. I didn’t want to run away from the situation. I wanted to run to it and play. The best place for me tonight was here.”