Austin Daye apologized to Pistons coach John Kuester and the Pistons fans for arriving late to Friday's now famous shootaround. According to Daye he was late because of a simple miscommunication on his part.

“I was late to shootaround,” Daye said. “I made a mistake. I wasn’t paying attention. Everyone was leaving and my phone, I didn’t get a text message. I was late to shootaround. I missed the first bus. I showed up late, but that’s what you get when you make a mistake.”

Daye said he wasn’t part of any player protest against Kuester and he apologized to Kuester for being late.

“For me personally, I have no problem with coach,” Daye said. “He’s been playing me so why would I protest him.

“I was late,” Daye later added. “It’s inexcusable for a player to be late because of a miscommunication. I got benched for the game and I understood why. I didn’t hold a grudge. I wasn’t telling coach that was the wrong decision because I told him when I saw him it was the right decision. He stepped up and started me tonight.”

Daye admitted it was hard to watch six of his teammates play Friday as he sat on the bench and he’s hopeful to learn from his mistake.

“You make a mistake and you learn from it,” Daye said. “That’s exactly why I didn’t play because I was late. Trust me, if I could have been on time I would have. With that said, it hurt me to seem my teammates out there with only six players knowing I could help. That’s not a mistake I want to make again. I apologize to the Pistons fans and the Piston family for being late and my tardiness.”

Below is video of Daye's interview with the media Saturday night: