Tony Dejak/Associated Press
Cleveland Cavaliers head coach John Beilein provided some clarity to a Wednesday film session with his team, insisting he meant to call players "slugs" and not "thugs."
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported the news, noting Beilein understood the racial connotations of what he said and reached out to players individually to explain he misspoke when he said they were no longer playing "like a bunch of thugs" during the session.
"I didn't realize that I had said the word 'thugs,' but my staff told me later I did and so I must have said it," Beilein said.