GROWTH HURT
HE DID not put his fist through a wall or doink himself in the forehead with the frame of a kicking net.
But sadly for Giants fans who are hoping for a more mature and responsible Odell Beckham Jr. in 2017, he was up to some familiar immature acts on Monday, showing up more than an hour and a half late to a community event for kids at MetLife Stadium, spending minimal time there before whisking himself into a shiny black SUV waiting like he was some sort of diva rock star trying to avoid his adoring masses.
That Beckham was late to the event, at which he was scheduled to conduct a football clinic for about 50 kids, isn’t so much the issue.
It’s the fact that — according to two sources with knowledge of the situation who spoke to The Post on the condition of anonymity — Beckham was late because he missed his red-eye flight Sunday out of California, where he was attending the Coachella Music Festival, forcing the sponsor of the event, Dunkin’ Donuts, to scramble to arrange another flight for him on Monday.
Beckham, who was paid to make the appearance, was scheduled to be there from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. to conduct an “exclusive football clinic” for the Van Cortlandt Park Titans and then partake in a “postevent celebration” with the kids and their parents.
He arrived at 7 p.m. and was driven off in the SUV by 8:15 p.m.
Though this had nothing to do with the result of a Giants football Sunday, it was not a promising sign that Beckham has matured the way Jerry Reese implored his best offensive player to during the Giants general manager’s season-ending press conference in January.
Reese’s words were sharp and pointed shortly after Beckham punched a hole in the wall outside the visitors’ locker room at Lambeau Field following the Giants’ playoff loss to the Packers, and after he spearheaded that ill-fated receivers trip to South Beach to hang with Justin Bieber days before the loss in Green Bay.
“We all had to grow up at different times in our lives, and I think it’s time for him to do that,” Reese said. “He has been here for three years now and is a bit of a lightning rod because of what he does on the football field. But the things he does off the football field, he has to be responsible for those things.
“I know he’s a smart guy and I believe he understands that he has a responsibility being one of the faces of the franchise and I think he will accept that responsibility.”
Monday was not a good start. If anything, it raised at least a small red flag that Beckham learned nothing about representing himself off the field in a more mature way.
Beckham left the organizers of the event scrambling to keep the kids occupied in his absence, giving them a tour of MetLife Stadium and the locker room.
The kids were on the field for more than an hour before Beckham finally sauntered out there with no apology or explanation for his lateness.
Because the organizers did such a smooth job of covering for Beckham and keeping the kids occupied, and because the kids finally got to see their hero, all was not lost.
Beckham threw passes to the kids, took a few questions and posed for pictures with each of them. So, fortunately their experience was not tarnished.
It still was surely a memorable day for them, and that’s what matters most.
Hopefully, for the sake of Giants fans looking for a more mature Beckham, this ends up being a mere blip on the radar.