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Report: Beilein to remain Cavs coach after emotional apology

Jason Miller / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Head coach John Beilein delivered an emotional apology to Cleveland Cavaliers players prior to Thursday's shootaround in Detroit, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, and is expected to retain his position with the team.

The 66-year-old referred to his team as "thugs" during a Wednesday film session but later insisted he meant to say "slugs."

Cavs general manager Koby Altman reportedly met with him Thursday and talked to players to gauge how they felt about the first-year bench boss' apology, Wojnarowski adds.

"I don't think there was any malice or intent to upset us. ... At the end of the day, as a person, he's a good man and he misspoke," forward Kevin Love told reporters Thursday, according to Angel Gray of Fox Sports. "He owned up to it, came in this morning to apologize, and now we've moved on."

Fifth-year center Larry Nance offered a similar response and said he was comfortable moving forward with Beilein as his head coach.

"He handled it like a man," Nance said, according to Brad Galli of WXYZ Detroit. "He very well could have shied away from it and just kind of hoped it went away by itself."

Beilein signed a five-year contract with the Cavaliers this summer after a 12-season stint with Michigan. He turned around a program that struggled following the "Fab Five" era to lead Michigan to nine NCAA Tournament appearances, including a pair of national championship games.

Beilein is highly regarded in college basketball circles but has failed to find the same success at the pro level. Cavaliers players reportedly expressed their displeasure with his coaching style in December.

Cleveland sits near the bottom of the Eastern Conference with a 10-27 record entering Thursday's slate.

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