Clippers Coach Doc Rivers gets a chuckle over rival’s ‘Glenn’ comment

Reporting from OKLAHOMA CITY —  They were three words presumably intended to intensify one of the NBA’s most toxic rivalries.

Instead, Golden State forward Draymond Green’s verbal slight toward Doc Rivers prompted a smile and laughter Tuesday from the Clippers coach.

“It makes me happy that I could get someone mad,” Rivers said. “That probably made my day.”

Green had used Rivers’ given name, Glenn, in a radio interview Monday when informed of comments Rivers had made about Clippers reserve Dahntay Jones bumping Green during a postgame interview Sunday at Oracle Arena in Oakland.

Rivers told reporters Monday, “The bump was too hard for him, clearly, the way he reacted. My goodness. I thought the guy was tough.”

Green’s response?

“Cool story, Glenn,” Green said during his radio interview.

Rivers seemed to enjoy the latest salvo in the ongoing conflict between the Clippers and Warriors, which has included technical fouls, ejections and even a hallway confrontation after a playoff game. The NBA fined Jones $10,000 for his bump of Green, though Jones said he would appeal the penalty.

“Clearly,” Rivers said of the Warriors, “they’re thinking about us more than we know.”

Rivers, who was given the nickname Doc by former Marquette assistant coach Rick Majerus at a basketball camp because he was wearing a Julius Erving (a.k.a. Dr. J) T-shirt, said the only people to call him Glenn were his mother and coach Pat Riley when they were mad at him.

“I guess now Draymond is in that same category,” Rivers said, laughing.

More money?

The National Basketball Players Assn. announced as expected it would not accept the league’s “cap smoothing” proposal designed to avoid a jarring increase in team salary caps once revenue from the new television contract begin being distributed in 2016.

One result could be that marquee free agents, such as Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, will sign one-year contracts this summer to increase the annual value of longer contracts the following year.

If Jordan signed a one-year contract with the Clippers this summer for about $19 million, he could re-sign in 2016 for five years and an estimated $130 million as opposed to the five years and roughly $109.3 million he could command this summer.

Rivers said he wasn’t concerned about players’ financial maneuverings.

“I’m worried about making sure we get all our guys back and keep trying to build a better team,” Rivers said, “but listen, we’re all going to be able to adjust to it, we’re all going to figure it out. It will allow you to budget in a different way, obviously, but we’ll see.”

Flop warning

The NBA won’t get any argument from Rivers on this one.

Clippers reserve forward Glen Davis indeed flopped.

The league issued Davis a warning for violating its anti-flopping policy midway through the fourth quarter Sunday during the Clippers’ loss to Golden State.

As the Warriors’ Leandro Barbosa dribbled around Davis, Davis fell on his back as if having been knocked down by Barbosa. Davis’ acting job sold game officials, who called Barbosa for an offensive foul.

Barbosa later tweeted a Vine of the play along with the caption “FLOP TIME!!”

“He flopped,” Rivers said of Davis, “so he should get a warning.”

Players are subject to a $5,000 fine if they are deemed to have violated the league’s anti-flopping policy a second time. The only other Clipper to receive a flop warning this season was J.J. Redick against the Boston Celtics on Jan. 19.

Times correspondent Eric Pincus contributed to this report.

ben.bolch@latimes.com

Twitter: @latbbolch