I get that the fine folks in the media (hey wait, I guess that includes me too kinda) rely on players talking to make their livelyhood. But I'm not sure I get the righteous indignation Chris Sheridan has over Rondo's ducking of the media the other night.
Rondo blows of the media after leading Celtics over Bulls with triple-double
Shame on Rajon Rondo, shame on the Boston Celtics … and shame on David Stern and the NBA if they let Rondo and the Celtics get away with a clear breach of NBA rules and locker room etiquette.
Back in the day, a quote like that would earn a team a $25,000 fine, with a similar fine being assessed to the player for breaking the rules. NBA players are supposed to be available to the media for 45 minutes before the game (although a majority of them make themselves unavailable by hiding in the players' lounge) and also after the game. The public wants to know what they have to say, the reporters are there to convey that message to the public, and the media rules are in place to assure that the NBA is properly publicized. And when a player such as Rondo decides the rules do not apply to him, there are supposed to be consequences.
I don't get it. Do you really want Rondo to sit there and give you more cliched quotes that you can tell by his expression he doesn't even care about? Is that worth getting riled up about? If he doesn't want to talk once in a while, so what? I guess I just don't get it. Feel free to educate me.