It may not have been a summit meeting, but it was an important visit that coach Rick Carlisle had with backup big man Salah Mejri on Tuesday, the day after "The Mej" was ejected against Washington for arguing a foul call.
Bottom line: Carlisle apologized for his handling of the situation.
"I had a long talk with Salah about what happened and apologized to him for behavior that was really emotional, uncalled for and unprofessional on my part," Carlisle said. "He's one of our best competitors. Things got heated. Conflict sometimes can bring out communication, which is what I'm hoping comes from this. But I want to make sure that he understands and all our fans understand how important he is to our team and how sorry I am about what happened when he was ejected."
The situation was such that Carlisle was concerned about the momentum swaying in a game the Mavericks had dominated. They were ahead by double figures when Mejri picked up two technical fouls and the ejection in the third quarter.
Carlisle said he's finding out that in the heat of battle, Salah disappears and "The Mej" takes over.
"It's his alter-ego _ it's 'The Mej,' " Carlisle said. "So I got to work on my relationship with The Mej and trying to even the keel out.
"Competitiveness in heated NBA games can sometimes bring out uncontrolled emotions. It can happen to players and it can happen to coaches. None of us are perfect and we have to talk it out, and work it out. The reality is he's been one of our most productive players in recent weeks from a plus-minus standpoint and he knows that. We need him."
Mejri said that he appreciated Carlisle talking through the situation on the morning after. He said the situation was over and that, while the media may have overblown the situation a bit, Mejri understood that everybody has a job to do.
"I'm playing with energy, with edge," the 7-2 Mejri said. "Sometimes, it hurts me. But that's the way I am. I'm not going to change. There are a lot of people who don't like me. I don't like a lot of people, too. I don't need fans from other places to like me. I'm happy with what I'm doing. Everybody makes mistakes. I'll keep growing."
Asked if he becomes a different sort of person during games, he said:
"For sure. A lot of people say I'm a nice guy outside. But once the lights are on, I get focused. I get competitive. If I stop playing with attitude, stop playing angry _ and then I don't play angry, they're like, 'no, please play angry.'
"I'm big, man. I have this beard. I talk aggressive ... Maybe it's new for the referees and they think I'm fighting with them. But I'm just talking to them. Everybody has the right to talk to the referees, no?"
They do, but there are players in the NBA who get eyed by the referees a little more closely than others.
Asked if he is getting a bad reputation, Mejri said:
"I don't care."
