Warriors' Durant apologizes over ejection in Game 1 opener

Hours before the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors were to face the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series Monday, forward Kevin Durant apologized for his ejection in the Saturday's Game 1 opener. A verbal exchange between Durant and Clippers point guard Patrick Beverley late in Game 1 caused both players to be ejected because of multiple technical fouls. Durant seemed to enjoy the back-and-forth with Beverley, smiling as he left the floor.

But Warriors head coach Steve Kerr expressed disappointment afterward that Durant engaged in a verbal spat with the aggressive Beverley. Chief among Kerr's concerns is that seven accumulated technical fouls during the playoffs earns a one-game suspension. "In the moment it was cool," Durant told reporters at Warriors' shootaround Monday. "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 (stuff) 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's plan moving forward against Beverley, a defensive stalwart and known antagonist, is simple.

"Just keep my mouth shut and play the game," Durant said. Game 2 was scheduled for later Monday at Oakland, Calif., with the series scheduled to shift to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Thursday