Yes, semantics. Why? Because regardless of his intentions it angered Doc to the point of both having to be restrained so they wouldn't come to blows. Either it was thrown at Doc or Doc really loved his video monitor a lot.
I just went online and read a half a dozen or so accounts of the incident. None of them said Rondo threw anything at Doc and none of them said they had to be restrained so they wouldn't come to blows. They all said Rondo threw a bottle at a video screen and walked out of the meeting and that he came back the next day and apologized to the team. More semantics I suppose?
I suppose you didn't look hard enough. Notice how Ainge didn't deny the report of the near fight, but dismissed it as having occurred a long time ago.
Tim, I know you like the guy A LOT, but how can you keep turning a blind eye to report after report ?
A report surfaced on SheridanHoops.com over the weekend that Rivers wanted to get away from Rondo and the two had almost come to blows once in the locker room. Perhaps that’s all true (people have questioned Rondo’s behavior for years), but it should at least be noted that Rivers didn’t decide to make an exit until a playoff series without Rondo revealed all the work Boston needed to become a contender again.
Plus, Rondo was injured in January and the incident couldn’t have happened after then –unless the guard tried to fight Rivers while hobbling on a torn ACL, over a game in which he didn’t play.
Though president of basketball operations Danny Ainge’s word shouldn’t be taken as gospel, he suggested Tuesday night that Rondo played no part in pushing Rivers out the door. According to Ainge, Sheridan’s report was about an incident that occurred many moons ago.
“The report that came out a couple days ago, that was two or – was it two-years old news?” Ainge said before referencing a time during the 2010 playoffs when Rondo interrupted a team film session by shattering a video screen with a water bottle. “You guys had all reported that over two years ago, I think. That was old news, so that’s completely unfair. Rajon Rondo had nothing to do with any of this.”
I checked plenty of articles, including the original article on yahoo. They all said Rondo threw the bottle at the monitor and stormed out of the room. None of them said anything about a physical confrontation. I can't really comment on what you're quoting because you haven't provided links for anything you're putting in your posts.
Beyond that, you're kind of all over the map with what you're claiming. You said Rondo threw a bottle at Doc and when none of the articles I've found (or you've posted) make that claim. You also claim there was nearly a fight in that meeting. None of the reports mentioned anything like that. The article you posted doesn't even make that claim, it doesn't say anything about when the incident happened or claim that it was at the team meeting.
Also, when you say I'm ignoring "report after report", it looks like I just ignored 1 report. When I googled the Rondo/Doc near-fight all I found was one article making that claim and other articles reporting that claim. Nobody other than Sheridan ever seems to confirm his story or give any other details of the occurrence. I'm somewhat skeptical that none of the reporters that follow the team had any idea at all about the incident, including the reporter who wrote the article about Rondo throwing the water bottle at the monitor.
Bolded.
http://www.masslive.com/celtics/index.ssf/2013/06/danny_ainge_of_boston_celtics.html
Why do you act as though there is some giant conspiracy to tarnish Rondo's name?
"The report that came out a couple days ago, that was two or – was it two-years old news?” Ainge said before referencing a time during the 2010 playoffs when Rondo interrupted a team film session by shattering a video screen with a water bottle. “You guys had all reported that over two years ago, I think. That was old news, so that’s completely unfair. Rajon Rondo had nothing to do with any of this.”
Looks like Danny's not even positive that's the incident that Sheridan was referencing. But you've clearly spent a lot of time researching that incident on the internet. Show me a single article from when it was first reported that reference a physical confrontation, or any mention of the confrontation that doesn't include something like "Chris Sheridan reported...". You might be right about this, but when only one person reports something happened and he's not the person who reported the incident in the first place I get suspicious.
There might not be a widespread effort to tarnish Rondo's reputation, but is there a widespread effort among reporters to cover up his issues? Here's the original account, I believe:
The Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett reports that Rondo lost his temper in a film session after Game 2.
"Rondo's errors were being pointed out when he arose and began discussing the mistakes of his teammates. Loudly. Using harsh language," Bulpett wrote. "Coach Doc Rivers got up and fired back, and Rondo threw a bottle that shattered the video screen. He bolted from the practice facility and was prevented from returning when he tried later."
"I went home that night and thought about my actions," Rondo told the Herald. "I talked to [Kevin Garnett], and I came back the next day and apologized to the team."
Did Bulpett hide the physical confrontation because he was so concerned that too many people might read his column?
An aside, but his talking to KG after the incident, everything I've heard from KG, even your quote (KG- No, no. I’ve grown to understand Shorty. His greatest gift is his greatest curse. We as players try to help him to understand that. Me, more or less, I see a lot of myself in him. ) are why I don't think there are any real issues between Rondo and KG.
