Social media was set ablaze when actor and comedian Michael Rapaport revealed some Instagram direct messages he received from Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant.

Rapaport was emotional as he discussed the fallout from the saga during an appearance on FOX Sports' “UNDISPUTED” program.

 

Rapaport seems to lament ever putting the messages out in the public sphere. He said Friday on Instagram he was upset things had gone so far:

“I feel bad about it,” Michael Rapaport said, via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post. “I feel bad about my involvement in the situation. I feel bad that it’s gotten this far. I met him one time. It was cool, cordial. I’m a fan. I met him as a fan.”

Rapaport said he and Durant had even made the previous contact regarding a social media idea:

“The funny thing is he actually had reached out to me about doing something that I call on social media ‘The Shame Game’ — putting people who talk s— on social media on blast,” Rapaport said, via Dunleavy. “That was actually the way we met.”

The conflict between Durant and Rapaport began when the latter criticized KD for being “sensitive” during an interview with Charles Barkley and the Inside The NBA crew on the first night of the 2020-21 regular season.

Durant, who has never been afraid to challenge his critics on social media, said Michael Rapaport had no need to inject himself into the matter and noted Barkley did not need a bodyguard. The rant included plenty of choice words.

Kevin Durant had been fined $50,000 by the NBA for using “derogatory language” during an expletive-filled rant. He apologized for the interaction after the fact, saying the messages do not reflect the kind of character he wants to convey.