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Haunted hotel spooks Metta World Peace and Lakers

NBA Halloween needs its scary story, same as anybody’s Halloween. And the Los Angeles Lakers provided one – or at least updated one – in timely fashion this weekend.

The Skirvin Hilton in Oklahoma City holds the distinction of being the Western Conference’s haunted hotel on most teams’ itineraries; its counterpart in the Eastern Conference allegedly is Milwaukee’s Pfister Hotel. So when the Lakers traveled to OKC for their game Sunday, a few members of their road party were uncomfortable over the prospect of staying and sleeping – or trying to sleep – at the Skirvin.

Leave it to veteran Metta World Peace to turn what some have described as paranormal activity into a real ghostly groping. Here’s how Mark Medina, Lakers beat writer for the Orange County Register, related World Peace’s interesting Saturday night visit:

“The ghosts were all over me. I just accepted it,” Lakers forward Metta World Peace said. “They touched me all over the place. I’m taking one of the ghosts to court for touching me in the wrong places.”

World Peace insisted he was serious before explaining why he did not stay somewhere else.

“I was watching a good movie and I was tired,” said World Peace, who incidentally said he saw “Money Monster.” “I didn’t want to move.”

Guard Nick Young stayed where he was as well – sleeping on towels to cover the bedsheets and the blankets on his bed. Young had been infected with bed bugs when he stayed at the Skirvin five years ago while with the L.A. Clippers.

More from Medina:

With players reporting seeing ghosts at the Skirvin Hotel in recent years, Lakers guard Lou Williams and forward Larry Nance Jr. refused to stay. They paid for their own rooms at the nearby Colcord Hotel.

“I prefer to stay away from the supposed supernatural,” Nance said. “I just don’t want any issues.”

The legend surrounding the Skirvin Hotel becoming haunted reportedly stems from the owner having an affair with a housekeeper named Effie. After Effie became pregnant, she was locked inside a room on the upper floor. She then killed herself and the child, which cast a spell on the hotel.

Williams has since heard endless tales from players hearing babies crying at the Skirvin Hotel, a head-scratching development since NBA teams book rooms away from the general public. Cleveland guard Kyrie Irving also reported having bed bugs last season while staying at the Skirvin.

“I’m not going to play with that. I’d rather pay for my peace of mind,” said Williams, who also refuses to stay at the Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee for the same reason. “If they say it’s haunted, that’s enough for me. I’m not going to roll the dice.”

That all sounded absurd to Lakers rookie center Ivica Zubac. But when he arrived at his hotel room early Saturday morning feeling chills, Zubac soon left for the Colcord Hotel.

And if that tale doesn’t put you in the trick-or-treating spirit, these might:

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