Quotes from the NBA

'I've never, in my time since I picked up a basketball, ever undermined a coach, ever disrespected a coach. And I'm not the owner of a team, I'm not the GM of a team. I'm the player of a team.' - Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James after speculation he engineered the team's surprise sacking of Israeli-American head coach David Blatt.

'Goliath eliminates David' - Israeli newspaper headline as anti-James sentiment ran high in Israel in the wake of the Blatt firing.

'I'm embarrassed for our league.' - Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle on the Cavs' decision to fire Blatt, even though they were leading the Eastern Conference.

'It won't mean anything if we meet San Antonio in the playoffs. They've seen everything. They are not going to be fazed by it.' - Golden State coach Steve Kerr after his Warriors trounced the Spurs 120-90 in a battle of the NBA's top two teams.

'It was like men and boys out there tonight.' - San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich on the Spurs' loss to the Warriors.

'A situation among friends escalated and I regret the way I handled myself towards someone I care about.' - The Los Angeles Clippers' Blake Griffin on Twitter, apologizing for punching a team trainer -- a blow that broke Griffin's hand.

'It's a tough situation. Two guys that I'm super close with and it's sticky man.' - Clippers center DeAndre Jordan on being interviewed by NBA security regarding the Griffin punch-up.

'Not everyone is going to appreciate you the same way. So that's just something that you have to live with. But I feel a lot of people did appreciate me and Kobe definitely was one of them.' - Spain's Pau Gasol, now with the Chicago Bulls, after Lakers star Kobe Bryant said Los Angeles didn't fully appreciate Gasol during his time with the Lakers.