Austin Rivers is fined
DALLAS — Austin Rivers was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Saturday for directing inappropriate comments toward a fan during the Clippers’ loss to the Utah Jazz on Thursday night at Staples Center.
Rivers apologized for his actions and said that he was only taking up for Clippers teammate DeAndre Jordan, whom he said was being trash-talked.
Rivers said he apologized to the fan after the game.
“I didn’t handle it the best way,” Rivers said Saturday. “But, at the end, I was sticking up for my teammate. If it happens, would I do it all over again? No, probably not because I wouldn’t want to get fined. And you’re not supposed to respond to fans anyway. But he was talking reckless to DJ, talking about some trade … going down.”
Rivers was shown in a video walking back toward some fans sitting courtside, his hands and head gesturing.
He then could be heard telling the fan, “Shut the ... up.”
The video also shows Jordan walking over and pulling Rivers away.
Clippers coach Doc Rivers didn’t like having Austin swear at a fan, but he also didn’t like the idea that a Clippers fan would be so negative about the team during these tough times.
“I liked that he took exception what someone said about one of his teammates,” Rivers said. “You always like when a player is defending one of his own teammates. That’s nice. What I don’t like, with any of my players, is never, ever engage.
“Honestly, that’s hard. It’s harder when you’re not playing well. And it’s harder when you’re playing great, as crazy as that sounds, because when you’re great and you go on the road, you hear some crazy .... When you’re bad, you hear it at home and I’ve always thought that was disappointing.”
Beverley sighting
Patrick Beverley drove with his friends over four hours from Houston to Dallas on Saturday morning because the injured Clippers point guard “wanted to see his boys and to see what was going on with them.”
Beverley walked into the Clippers’ locker room on crutches and had a big brace on the right knee he had season-ending surgery on and a microfracture procedure last month in Houston, where he remains while doing his rehabilitation.
“I’m doing good,” a smiling Beverley said. “Gotta say what’s up?”
His teammates were happy to see Beverley.
“I love that he came down here,” Austin Rivers said. “Most guys wouldn’t come. To have him here is pretty cool. Plus, it’ll be entertaining with Pat.”
TONIGHT AT MINNESOTA
When: 4 PST On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 570, 1330. Update: Minnesota center Karl-Anthony Towns leads the NBA in double-doubles with 18. Towns is averaging 20.5 points and 11.6 rebounds, fifth-best in the league. Former Clipper Jamal Crawford is averaging 9.2 points, the lowest since his second season in the NBA, 2001-02 in Chicago.