But he is adamant that the Thunder have made a huge mistake in letting go of their head coach of seven years.

takes issue with), Brooks told The Oklahoman that the team will regret firing him heading into the final year of Kevin Durant's contract.

"I'm not mad, but you can't tell me it was fair," said Brooks. "I understand how ruthless the business can be, but the Thunder is supposed to be above that. I can't tell you how many times I've preached loyalty, family, commitment to these players--things I still believe in--when things got tough. I guess things got a little too tough this time for them to stick by those principles."

Brooks specifically warned that the move could have disastrous ramifications with Durant. "When we traded James [Harden], I was doing damage control with the guys for a while, particularly with Kevin," Brooks said. "I know Kevin will say the right things and handle this like a pro, but there's not a doubt in my mind that he won't see the hypocrisy in it. As a small market team, those principles of loyalty and trust are what we knew we had to demonstrate to set ourselves apart from other teams. When Kevin's contract is up, what sets them apart now?"

Brooks says he hasn't spoken with Durant since being fired. "No, no," the coach clarified, "I'm not saying this is what Kevin told me--I think it's just obvious at this point."

Before the firing, Durant offered his support of Brooks along with teammates Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka: "“He rallied us, man. He made sure everybody was emotionally stable. It was a lot of guys in and out the lineup and he kept everybody together. So that’s what your head coach is supposed to do. We can’t really say nothing about it because he did his job. He kept us together. That’s what the main thing was…So it’s kind of tough. But he did his best job he can do and I’m proud of him.”

Brooks went 338-207 with the Thunder. He led the team to a 39-34 postseason record, including three appearances in the Western Conference Finals over the past four seasons, as well as a trip to the NBA Finals in 2012. Brooks was named Coach of the Year for the 2009-10 season after helping the team enjoy a 28-game improvement from the previous season.