During a game against the Dallas Mavericks in November, Boston Celtics star point guard Kyrie Irving reportedly had a heated moment on the bench in which he directed words toward head coach Brad Stevens and others, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Celtics got off to a slow start to the season, which frustrated the entire team. During the Mavs game, Kyrie Irving had an emotional exchange with Stevens and the coaching staff and let out some frustration he was holding in:

A loss in Dallas on Nov. 24 was compounded by the first signs of frustration when Irving had a heated moment on the bench in which he directed words toward coach Brad Stevens and others, league sources told The Athletic. It was after the coaching staff’s feedback over a turnover on a previous play, according to sources, when Irving finally responded, had an emotional exchange and let out some bottled up frustration.

The incident did not get personal, according to witnesses. Irving and Stevens are known to have a close relationship, which Irving has credited as part of the reason he has committed long-term to Boston. It is not unusual for a star player and his team to have these types of blow-ups, but it needed to occur and came during a notable turning point early in this Celtics season.

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The Celtics have since turned things around and are 20-13 on the season, good for fifth place in the Eastern Conference. Kyrie Irving is putting up stellar numbers per usual. The five-time All-Star is averaging 23.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game and shooting 48.6 percent overall and 41.3 percent from beyond the arc.

Players and coaches are going to get heated sometimes. It's a long NBA season and losing brings out the worst in people. Luckily for the Celtics, Kyrie Irving and Brad Stevens have a great relationship, so they can afford to get mad at each other from time to time because they both know it's coming from the right place.