ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Albuquerque Public School leaders are investigating as a West Mesa High School basketball player and his coach are accused of using a racial slur.

They reportedly used the “N” word on the court and in the locker room during a recent basketball game. The mother of the player, senior captain Johnny Young III, wants to know why her son is off the team while Leo Ural is still coaching. 

“Tension was just really high in this game. Coaches were upset, players were upset. Albuquerque High was doing really well. Unfortunately, we weren’t,” said Terika Martinez, Young’s mom. “The coach, assistant coach, kind of bumped him. I don’t think it was intentional, but when he did that, he kind of told them, ‘Watch out.’ and used the word with an ‘A.’”

Martinez says her son’s coach repeated the slur in the locker room.

“The head varsity coach did start saying the ‘N’ word with the ‘ER’, and talking to Johnny, and I guess maybe all the players,” Martinez said. 

Young says he went from sitting out the next game to sitting out the rest of the season, including senior night.

“I went to the office on my own and apologized to the assistant coach. And I kind of just turned to our the head coach, and I was kind of more, like, respectfully, like I was bothered by something you said,” said Young. “He’s tried to create like an environment where saying that men have hard conversations with other men, and men talk about things that make them uncomfortable. So I thought, OK, I can walk in and say something that made me uncomfortable.”

Young says he met with his principal and APS’ athletics department. Now, he’s off the team until further notice.

“With teammates that I’ve known since I was young. I mean, some of my teammates I’ve played with since I was in middle school, I’ve known since I was in elementary school. I mean, it sucks. I put a lot of time, like, effort,” Young said. 

“Johnny had the only negative consequences, the coach is still coaching,” said Martinez. 

KOB 4 reached out to APS. A spokesperson says the district does not condone the use of offensive language by staff or students. The district’s equal opportunity service is in the early stages of the investigation.