'Spitgate' saga: NBA star goes nuclear on 'horrible teammate'
LA Lakers star Rajon Rondo was hit with a three-game suspension for his role in the crazy NBA brawl that overshadowed their clash with the Houston Rockets.
Despite saying he would keep silent on the situation, that sentiment lasted less than 24 hours before the veteran point guard went nuclear.
In his most recent interview with ESPN, Rondo again denied spitting on Chris Paul prior to their physical altercation and accused his Rockets counterpart of concocting “spitgate” to make himself out as the good guy.
But Rondo decided to reject Paul’s narrative, labelling him a “horrible teammate”.
“Of course, the NBA went with his side because I got three games and he got two,” Rondo told ESPN.
“Everyone wants to believe Chris Paul is a good guy. They don’t know he’s a horrible teammate.
“They don’t know how he treats people. Look at what he did last year when he was in L.A., trying to get to the Clippers locker room. They don’t want to believe he’s capable of taunting and igniting an incident.”
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The origin of the Rajon Rondo-Chris Paul beef
Long-time rivals Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul went toe-to-toe after the latter accused the former of spitting in his face, but there’s a history between the two.
The beef between Rondo and Paul did not start stewing this week. It reportedly began in 2008, when Paul beat out Rondo for Team USA.
A year later, Rondo allegedly told Paul during a game, “I’ve got a ring, and you’re never gonna win one,” and the two nearly came to blows in the hallway afterward.
It took almost a decade for them to finally throw punches. In the fourth quarter of a hotly contested Rockets-Lakers game on Saturday, Paul and Rondo came nose to nose.
The confrontation appeared to turn physical when Paul poked Rondo’s eye. Rondo responded by sandwiching three punches to Paul’s face around a pair coming back his way.
Lakers player Brandon Ingram unleashed another in Paul’s direction before LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony helped separate the pack that enveloped the two longtime rivals:
with Yahoo Sports US.