6/22/2023 0 Comments Jeff mcinnis charles oakley![]() ![]() … He comes out and says I spit and the media sides with that.” They don’t want to believe he’s capable of taunting and igniting an incident. Look at what he did last year when he was in L.A., trying to get to the Clippers’ locker room. “They don’t know he’s a horrible teammate. “Everyone wants to believe Chris Paul is a good guy,” Rondo told ESPN. According to Clippers coach Doc Rivers and Ryan Hollins (a former teammate of both players), there’s longstanding bad blood between him and Paul, and Rondo certainly hasn’t dispelled any notion that this brawl was personal. It’s questionable whether that was the case with Rondo. In my mind, that’s an acceptable response, certainly better than a teammate seemingly reluctant to acknowledge any fault whatsoever.Īnd while Ingram may have been the true catalyst, he was at least reacting to elements directly (and to the best of anybody’s knowledge, strictly) related to the game. A hundred percent that I was wrong for my teammates, but I also stepped up for my teammates, and that is what I’m going to do 10 times out of 10.” “I think I’m the one that caused action and I’m going to take responsibility for every action that I did. ![]() ![]() “It’s my full responsibility,” Ingram said. I then asked how important accountability is to him as someone who wants to grow into a leadership role with the Lakers. “Everyone knows who I am, my team, and I think they still respect me for what I do and what I bring to this team,” Rondo replied. So I asked how, as someone who describes himself and is described by others as one of the Lakers’ primary leaders, he holds himself accountable for his actions. What happens in the locker room stays in the locker room, right? Why throw red meat to a bunch of nosy reporters?īut the issue of accountability remains. Of course, he may have actually spoken to his teammates but doesn’t want to offer details. Except, according to Rondo, no conversation took place. What matters is what he told his team about the bind his actions created for them. That’s not a great response, but Rondo isn’t necessarily obligated to spill his guts in a media scrum. I look forward to getting back and helping my team this weekend.” Based on public comments, that’s dicey.Īsked about his three-game suspension during Monday’s shootaround, and the league’s conclusion that he spat, Rondo said, “It’s best for me not to talk about the situation. And he did throw a punch, all of which could be interpreted as “trying to get” Rondo.īut here’s the thing: Even if you give Rondo the benefit of the doubt that he didn’t purposely spit at Paul, his accountability in the aftermath of this mess still matters. ![]() Of course, Paul’s immediate reaction to what appeared to be spit was shoving that finger into Rondo’s face. Or that Paul wouldn’t have been telling a reporter “30 seconds later” about being spat at, but instead would have been “trying to get me.” Or that Paul’s nearby teammates Carmelo Anthony and Eric Gordon would have reacted. Rondo added that, if he intentionally spat on Paul, his body language would have morphed into that of a man expecting a punch rather than keep his hands down. Rondo has since further doubled down on his denials, telling ESPN: “I had a mouthpiece in my mouth and I exasperated because I was about to tell him to ‘get the out of here.’ ” Rondo and the Lakers denied this, but video evidence surfaced confirming, at minimum, spit from Rondo’s mouth tagging Paul. Seconds later, all hell broke loose as the two threw jabs and haymakers.Īt first, it appeared Paul instigated the fight by poking a finger in Rondo’s face and eye, but he later claimed this was in reaction to Rondo spitting in his face. As the jawing players were separated, a new scrum formed with Rondo and Chris Paul at its center. Ingram, seemingly frustrated by the reigning MVP getting to shoot what felt like his billionth free throw, shoved him. The mood was set when James Ennis literally clotheslined Josh Hart and escaped with a mere Flagrant 1, but the brawl began after Brandon Ingram was called for a foul on James Harden. That mentality was on display during last Saturday night against the Houston Rockets in a game that devolved into a fourth-quarter brouhaha with hands being thrown and multiple suspensions eventually levied. He’s such a savant at running offenses that he can be viewed as an extension of the coach, but he also has a history of pushing up against the game plan if it’s not to his liking. Over the last few seasons, Rondo has built a reputation for mentoring young players, but the man is decidedly old school. ![]()
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