This is such a mess. I wonder how long it will take the NBA to determine if Rondo (still waiting to hear from him) will be suspended?! Earlier Kris Humphries showed off his injuries from the fight and now we have reactions from Paul Pierce & KG about what happened.
Check out what they had to say & weigh in…
RECAP of what happened from ESPN:
After Nets forward Kris Humphries delivered a foul that sent Kevin Garnett crashing hard to the floor, Rondo took exception and immediately confronted Humphries, delivering a two-handed shove. The two then got tangled, with Rondo the aggressor, and spilled into the stands beneath the basket in front of the Celtics’ bench as players and coaches from both teams rushed onto the court with security and team personnel trying to defuse the situation.
Humphries ended up falling backward, but managed to pull Rondo’s jersey up over his head as the two were quickly swarmed. At the same time, Garnett and Gerald Wallace were jostling with each other nearby.
After a video review, the referees ejected both Humphries and Rondo for fighting — crew chief James Capers later explained to a pool reporter that, by going into the stands, the two were involved in a fight that required ejection. Humphries earned two technical fouls, including one for taking Garnett to the floor with a second personal foul after the initial contact.
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Kevin Garnett:
Garnett admitted the team is worried about a possible suspension for Rondo, but liked how his teammate stood up for him.
“Obviously, we are (worried about a possible suspension),” Garnett said. “But it’s what it is. You have to protect each other, and we consider ourselves family around here, and that’s just the way it is.”
Asked about the initial infraction on Humphries, Garnett said, “Just a hard foul. I thought the antics afterward were a bit extra, but, (it was a) hard foul.”
Paul Pierce:
Asked about sticking up for a teammate, Celtics captain Paul Pierce said there’s a fine line between that and risking suspension.
“You don’t want to get into any altercations where it’s going to cost you any games,” Pierce said. “The best you can do is just try to play mediator in there. But when you’re in a battle, it’s tough sometimes. Elbows are thrown, guys get pushed, sometimes you just react. It’s in a lot of peoples’ nature. If I come and push somebody, their natural reaction is to push you back, or, if I hit you, the natural reaction is to hit you back. So, it’s tough when you’re in the heat of the battle. That’s what the game is sometimes.”
