Props to both those guys for not simply cashing that cheque, though.
I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed that game. So what if the players got heated? It shows they care. The league office "should" probably fine/suspend 'melo for a game, but this is all much ado about nothing.
Much ado about nothing? Let's take the same facts and replace Melo with Meta and do you think it would be much ado about nothing for the league?
No, I think the Association's prerogative is to make sure people don't think that the best basketball players in the world are real people with emotions that include anger, frustration, etc. It affects their technical foul policy, the way they interact (read: fine) players when they display any kind of defiance, and all manner of other things, including relatively innocuous stuff like the dress code and mandatory NBA Cares involvement (not to say it's all negative, I think NBA Cares is a great idea).
The NBA wants the public to feel safe around NBA players. When emotions get heated, people feel anxiety. So they step in and over-react to a situation like Rondo bumping the ref or the incident last night.
I just don't agree with it. Shouting, talking some **** and calmly waiting outside a bus? I understand that the league office feels they've got to come down with the hammer--and even if they don't they've set that precedent already--but personally I stand by my sentiment.