SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant has been fined $15,000 after his rant at officiating earlier this week, the NBA announced on Thursday.
Durant lost his cool at referee James Williams during Tuesday’s win over the New York Knicks, accusing him of targeting him with a technical.
“Second half, his whole thing was he’s trying to get me,” Durant complained to reporters after his fourth ejection of the season.
Durant subsequently apologized for his remarks, saying that after looking at the tape of the game he had realized Williams had acted correctly.
“I can go back and say I was being a jerk last night, and I deserve whatever the league is going to throw at me,” Durant said on Wednesday.
“I wish I had handled that better, obviously, but it was kind of heat of the moment for me. I could be better. It was a great learning experience for me, though.”
The National Basketball Referees Association later praised Durant’s mea culpa.
“Apology accepted. This is the kind of common ground we hope to achieve,” the NBA wrote in a Twitter post.
© Agence France-Presse
