Today at Celtics practice, Rajon Rondo spoke for the first time since being suspended for last night's game, and his explanation of Atlanta BumpGate 2.0 actually makes a ton of sense.
According to Rondo, the whole thing was a joke. He's friendly with referee Rodney Mott, and was just messing around. "At the time of the bump, I had a triple double, we were up 10, I wasn't angry," he told reporters. Rondo's claim is supported by the video, which clearly shows Mott laughing as he walks away:
Rondo's playful intentions also make more sense when you remember that the guy who benefited from Mott's awful call was Josh Smithaka Rondo's high school roommate and one of his best friends in the league.
You know, the more we hear about this story, the more it seems like Rondo's biggest problem was how he handled the league's "investigation." We don't know exactly what he did, but he certainly pissed off a few people, and that seems avoidable. Why not just tell the league: "Listen, I get it. I can't make contact with the referees. But this was just a joke. Rodney is my friend. Why don't you ask him why he didn't call a 'T'? Ask him if he felt threatened."
Or who knows. Maybe he did. Maybe he tried to explain himself, and the league just wasn't having it. "How can you be so obtuse?!" Rondo screamed. I'm guessing.
But either way, with today's media session, the latest chapter of Atlanta BumpGate is officially over. And unless Danny Ferry has another trick up his sleeve, let's hope it was the finale.
Rich can be reached at rlevine@comcastsportsnet.com. Follow Rich on Twitter at http:twitter.comrich_levine