Jazz's Mitchell backpedals on Harden diss: 'Obviously he's the MVP'

(Warning: Story contains coarse language)

Donovan Mitchell takes back what he said in the heat of the moment.

The Utah Jazz shooting guard was caught on camera following Sunday's 100-87 Game 4 loss to the Houston Rockets making a profane remark about James Harden.

"If that's what he needs to win f--king MVP, f--k it," he said.

Mitchell admitted Tuesday that he didn't mean to take his frustration out on Harden, conceding the Rockets star deserves to be named the league's Most Valuable Player after twice finishing as the runner-up.

"Obviously he's the MVP. There's no doubt about that," the rookie said, as quoted by ESPN's Tim MacMahon. "I'm pretty sure we've all said things in the heat of the moment when you get upset. It was more so just about myself. You try so hard to fight back and what we did.

"I'm definitely upset that it came out that way, but you can't do anything about it. I understand that there are cameras everywhere. I'm getting used to that. But like I said, he is the MVP, rightfully so."

Mitchell acknowledged his comment was about Harden's knack for getting favorable foul calls, with The Beard leading the NBA in scoring and free throws per game. But rather than worrying about officiating, Utah's leading scorer is focused on trying to take Game 5 on Tuesday. It's win or go home for the Jazz, who trail 3-1 in the Western Conference semifinals to the No. 1-seeded Rockets.