*Following Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul’s intense knuckle drill Saturday night at the Staples Center late in the 4th quarter, the New York Post offers some insight into the duo’s history that may have led to the explosion.
“Lot of history between them,” a source told ESPN of Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul after the melee over the weekend.
Here’s how the NY Post breaks it down:
The feud goes as far back as the 2008 Olympics, when Paul, Jason Kidd and Deron Williams were the point guards chosen to lead the “Redeem Team,” and Rondo was left off the roster. That snubbing may have stuck with Rondo, who then played with Team USA in the run-up to the 2012 Olympics, only to leave the team after a DNP when it became clear he was not going to get a slot.
If Rondo had any Olympic jealousy of Paul, he tried to play up any jealousy Paul, regarded as the better pro and a future Hall of Famer, may have had of him. In a 2009 on-court skirmish that broke out after a game between Paul’s Hornets and Rondo’s Celtics, the Boston point guard tried to emphasize what he had, and what Paul lacked.
“I’ve got a ring, and you’re never gonna win one,” Rondo told Paul, according to Adrian Wojnarowski, then of Yahoo.
The two tried to fight repeatedly that November night, with Paul having to be held back from the Celtics locker room, where he wanted to confront Rondo.
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Their long-simmering hostility came to a head Saturday.
As a result of the melee, CBS News reported that Ingram, Rondo and Paul were suspended without pay, with Paul taking the heaviest financial hit. Ingram was suspended four games, Rondo will sit out three games and Paul two games.
Meanwhile, the significant others of Chris and Rajon were also involved in a physical confrontation in the stands as their hubby’s feuded on the court.
via NY Post:
There was disagreement in the reports of how serious the fracas in the stands was. The Los Angeles Sentinel reported that Rondo’s girlfriend pushed Paul’s wife, Jada, who was sitting next to Savannah James, LeBron’s wife. The Athletic said that a member of Rondo’s family “confronted” Jada. The Houston Chronicle said someone made “inappropriate” comments to Jada.
Meanwhile, according to Complex:
NBA analyst Shams Charania reported that someone from Rondo’s family went after Chris Paul’s wife, Jada, in a confrontation. The family member said some inappropriate comments to her after the fight, which pissed off Paul even more.
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