OAKLAND, Calif. — Two days after a Game 1 win over the LA Clippers, Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant is frustrated that he is still fielding questions about a fourth-quarter ejection because of an ongoing verbal back-and-forth with Clippers guard Patrick Beverley.
Durant and Beverley were tossed after picking up a pair of double technicals just a few seconds apart late in Game 1; the two players had exchanged words throughout the contest. After the ejection, Durant left the floor smiling and high-fiving fans on the way back to the locker room, but after more reflection he realizes that the ejection caused a distraction for the rest of his teammates and coaches.
“In the moment it was cool,” Durant said after Monday’s shootaround in advance of Game 2. “But just the reaction after the game, I don’t want coach or my teammates or the organization to be upset with me because of some s— that I did. I don’t want to get in the way of what’s going out on the floor. I think that was a huge distraction and I don’t want that to be a part of this series. I just want to play. It looks like it’s a huge distraction.”
Durant now has two technicals and it only takes seven in the postseason to earn a one-game suspension. Durant, who narrowly avoided a suspension for an accumulation of technicals in the regular season, isn’t concerned about the number being an issue in the playoffs.
“I don’t want to disappoint my coaches,” Durant said, “and the fan base and owners who expect me to be out on the floor, so I apologize — for being thrown out the game.”
Warriors coach Steve Kerr also said he’s confident both Durant and emotional leader Draymond Green will stay under the technicals threshold over what the Warriors hope will be a long postseason run.
“I trust Kevin, and Draymond, for that matter, in terms of numbers of technicals and all that stuff,” Kerr said. “They know what they’re doing and I’m confident they’ll both stay below that threshold.”
Durant said he has a “simple” solution to keep Beverley from getting under his skin again as the series moves forward.
“Just keep my mouth shut and play the game,” Durant said.
Durant, who noted after Game 1 that he has played against Beverley since he was at Texas and Beverley was at Arkansas, said the veteran guard “plays hard” and is an “intense” competitor, but he chafed when asked if Beverley crosses the line in his play.
“This is not about me or Patrick Beverley,” Durant said. “It’s about the Clippers versus the Warriors.”