Los Angeles Clippers head coach and president of basketball operations Doc Rivers has admitted that he would have always regretted losing DeAndre Jordan in free agency.

The center had verbally agreed to sign with the Dallas Mavericks in the summer but an 11th hour move by the entire Clippers roster helped Jordan change his mind.

Rivers told Yahoo Sports: "Losing him would have always gnawed at me. But it wouldn't have stopped me. It might have been my front-office wake-up call.

"I was not a pleasant guy to me, or my staff, after I thought we lost him – and even after we got him back. We had a lot of 'come-to-Jesus' meetings."

The 53-year-old also responded to Mavs owner Mark Cuban's comments that his professional life would be "over" by taking a shot at his team's pursuit of Jordan.

The Clippers coach told The Orange County Register: "I'll say this. I'm so grateful to work for a team owned by Steve Ballmer, someone who stands for character and substance and who is so loyal.

"He is someone who I know will stand with me, even when things aren't always going our way. I think what happened with D.J. was he decided to choose substance and character over smoke and mirrors."

The Los Angeles Clippers will start their season against the Sacramento Kings on October 28 before hosting the Mavericks at the Staples Center a day later.