Amare Stoudemire is averaging 17.6 points and 8 rebounds per game for the Knicks this season.
Amare Stoudemire will miss 2-4 weeks. Reuters

Knicks forward Amar'e Stoudemire was fined $50,000 for calling a fan a gay slur in a direct message on Twitter.

After a fan told Stoudemire that he needed to come back a lot stronger and quicker to make up for this past season, the All-Star responded with a particularly nasty direct message.

F*ck you. I don't have to do any thing f*g.

The message can only be seen by the recipient of the direct message, but the fan took a screen shot of it and posted it online for all to see. The picture quickly went viral with many criticizing Stoudemire for his bad language.

Stoudemire later apologized to the fan, but that wasn't enough to escape the wrath of the NBA league office.

Stu Jackson, the NBA's executive vice president of basketball operations, called the language offensive and derogatory in a statement on Stoudemire's hefty fine.