Kevin Durant doesn’t think it needed to go down this way.

Durant responded to the Nets’ suspension of Kyrie Irving on Thursday night, which came days after his teammate shared a link to an anti-Semitic film and set off a firestorm of criticism surrounding himself, the team and the NBA.

“I’m not here to judge somebody or talk down on the life or how they feel their views,” Durant told reporters Friday. “I just didn’t like anything that went on. I felt like it was all unnecessary. I felt like we could have just kept playing basketball and kept quiet as an organization.”

Durant also had some criticism for the media.

“This is the way the NBA is now, media, so many outlets now and their stories hit pretty fast now,” he said. “So that’s where all the chaos is coming from. Everybody has an opinion on the situation, and we’re hearing it nonstop.”

Irving released a lengthy apology late Thursday night after being suspended at least five games by the team and earning a rebuke from he Anti-Defamation League. Those actions came on the heels of a combative six-minute availability in which he refused to apologize or answer directly when asked if he had anti-Semitic beliefs or whether he believed that the Holocaust happened.

“While doing research on YHWH, I posted a Documentary that contained some false anti-Semitic statements, narratives, and language that were untrue and offensive to the Jewish Race/Religion, and I take full accountability and responsibility for my actions,” Irving wrote in an Instagram post. “I am grateful to have a big platform, to share knowledge and I want to move forward by having an open dialogue to learn more and grow from this.”