Jordan Bell reveals his side of why Warriors suspended him, how he'll move on

MINNEAPOLIS -- Nothing seems to be easy for Jordan Bell thus far in his NBA career.

During his brief Warriors tenure, Bell's on- and off-court inconsistencies have been a reason he's occasionally fallen out of favor with the coaching staff.

His latest hiccup came this week when, according to sources, Jordan Bell purchased two items, and charged them to the room of assistant coach Mike Brown during the Warriors' stay in Memphis prior to Wednesday's 118-103 win over the Grizzlies. The Athletic first reported what Bell had done.

After a brief deliberation of whether to privately fine Bell and sit him on the bench for Wednesday's win or publicly suspend the second-year big man, the team opted for the latter, leaving Bell to watch his team grab its second consecutive win from the same hotel he committed the prank. 

Following Wednesday's win, Bell seemed to have the support of his teammates.

"It's really not that big of a deal," Andre Iguodala told NBC Sports Bay Area. "It's a mistake, nobody was harmed, learn from it and make sure it doesn't happen again. You just have to have your antennas up as far as how your mind works.

"When you're young, you can drift a little bit, then you have to reel yourself back in and calm down. He'll be fine."

"I see a long career ahead of him," Kevin Durant added. "Somebody that's the ultimate teammate, who comes in and is always ready, and he's still learning, man. It's gonna take him some time to figure things out as a player, but he's ahead of the curve."

Now, back from suspension, Bell chatted with NBC Sports Bay Area about the situation, his place on the Warriors' roster and even how his latest fiasco will affect his future with the team. 

Q: How has the last few days been for you?

Jordan Bell: Hectic learning experience and kind of funny at the same time. You see the power of the Internet, social media, all the stupid stuff they put out there. People making assumptions and things like that with the situation.

What's your version of the story?

I made an error of judgment and I thought I was doing something funny, and it wasn't. But I apologized to the individuals involved, and I hope to continue to move forward from this mistake.

How do you feel your relationship is with the team?

I think we're all good. I think everybody knows it was something I thought would be funny, as a joke that turned out not to be the way someone else took it, as a joke. So I have to be respectful of people's space, and even though I think something's funny, it might not be funny to them. Just to chill out.

What was your favorite tweet making fun of your situation?

I don't want to give anybody credit for making something stupid like that, but I thought it was funny. People thought it was pornography and all that. I was more so embarrassed [about the allegations of buying porn] because of my family. I know my family talks a lot about me to their friends and are proud of me.

So seeing that, I know they're going to get hit with that, and it's very embarrassing, but I just wanted to clear that up.

Where do you feel you are with the staff?

I think we're good. We talked about it. Like I said, it was a joke. It wasn't anything to try to hurt anybody personally. After we all talked about it, it was the coaches yesterday. I think we'll move past it.

What's this season been like for you?

Rough. Just a learning experience.

What's been the toughest part?

Minutes. Not knowing when you're going to play. That's just been the roughest part, honestly. And then dealing with all the stuff that comes with that.

You're in a contract year, and the Warriors can extend a qualifying offer this summer. With the recent events, are you concerned about this summer?

No, I'm not really that concerned. We have a championship to win. That's where my focus is now. I haven't had to deal with contract stuff yet, so I'm going to try to enjoy that as much as possible until that time comes. I don't think this off-the-court incident should affect on the court, as far as my play. I think I've been figuring things out. People have been helping me get through this hump.

Kevin Durant has come to your support. What did he tell you after the situation?

Not to let it affect me too much. Everybody's going to go through something stupid like this throughout the career. I just happen to have it bad because we're in the peak of social media. He said just deal with it because 24 hours later there's going to be another story, so just keep playing.

How does it feel to have the support of your teammates?

It was dope to know they're on your side. Like I said, everybody kind of crucifies you when they hear about a story that has a big gap or a story that leaves a big gap. It just leaves people's minds to wonder, so it was dope your teammates have your back and joke about it and, at the same time knowing at the end, if it comes down to it, they're going to defend you and have your back.

How did it feel sitting in a hotel room watching your team and knowing you couldn't help them win?

It sucks always to not be out there, but you have to learn from the situation and move on.