The NBA suspends Patrick Beverley for four games after he throws basketballs at fans in the stands

The NBA has suspended free-agent guard Patrick Beverley for four games without pay for angrily hurling a basketball into the stands during his team’s season-ending loss, officials said Thursday.

When Beverley’s Milwaukee Bucks fell to the host Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of their series last week, he threw a basketball into the seats behind the visitors’ bench.

The ball appeared to hit a fan in the face, and when the ball was thrown back to Beverley, he threw it again into the crowd.

In his Pat Bev Podcast On Tuesday, the temperamental player admitted his guilt.

“An unfortunate situation that should never have happened,” he said. “What I did was bad and it should never have happened. I have to get better and I will be better. This should never have happened, no matter what was said, it’s that simple.”

After the play where the ball was thrown, Beverley refused to answer questions from ESPN producer Malinda Adams.

Beverley, 35, is an unrestricted free agent, so his next team would likely be forced to keep him away from the team for four regular-season games.

The NBA took tougher action against Beverley than it did against Denver Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray, who threw a heat pack onto the court during the Nuggets’ playoff loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday.

The object landed in the feet of Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns and near his teammates Reggie Jackson and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Murray was fined $100,000 for the incident but was not suspended.

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch called Murray’s tantrum “inexcusable and dangerous.”