The Magic big man offered apologies for the heated exchange he had with Doncic.
Goga Bitadze has defended himself from the allegations made by Luka Doncic, calling the Los Angeles Lakers superstar's words completely far from the truth.
Doncic revealed in his postgame media availability Saturday that Bitadze dropped offensive remarks and threatened to "f**k" his family. Yet, the Orlando Magic big man denied all these in the aftermath of their 105-104 loss.
"I have all the respect for Luka and what he has done. I really respect everybody's family. Where I come from, it's really sacred and we really respect each other's family. I would never directly say that," Bitadze said, via Orlando Sentinel and ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
Bitadze and Doncic earned technical fouls after engaging in a verbal exchange heading to the final minute of Saturday's game. It all began during Doncic's free-throw process, as he started arguing with an official about Bitadze.
Bitadze made it clear that he just tried to retaliate against Doncic, offering further apologies if he may have offended the Lakers star.
"He just said some inappropriate things in the Serbian language. I played in Serbia and I understand. I don't know if he knew I understood what he said, so I just said it back. It was nothing towards his family or anybody. His family, I really, truly respect them," Bitadze added.
"What [Doncic] came out and said, I don't think that's the truth. I know that's not the truth. I know what I said. ... I apologize if it crossed the line."
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