The incident occurred with 8:10 remaining in the third quarter, when Carlisle stormed out on the American Airlines Center court to call a timeout and shouted at Rondo, who appeared to be ignoring a play call from the bench as he brought the ball up the floor.
Rondo responded by shouting back at Carlisle. They exchanged heated words for much of the timeout, with assistant coach Jamahl Mosley stepping in front of Rondo at one point to prevent the point guard and coach from getting in each other's faces.
"Well, it's an emotional game, and we had a difference of opinion," Carlisle said. "There was an exchange, and then in my mind it was over." [...]
"Discuss with Rick," said Rondo, a four-time All-Star whom the Mavs acquired in a blockbuster trade from the Boston Celtics on Dec. 18.
Now, things like this are often blown out of proportion. In the heat of competition, tempers can easily flare between teammates or players and their coaches, let alone with their opponents. But Rondo does have a history of being a bit hot-headed, and slightly toxic; beyond his shaky jumpshot and atrocious free throw shooting, that's probably the biggest knock against him. There's also been the referee shoving/chest-bumping incidents, the altercation that got him suspended and stopped his consecutive double-digit assist streak, and of course, his falling out with Ray Allen.
Incidents like this make me think that the Boston Celtics made a good call in trading him. He's very talented, and you'd probably still call him one of the Top 10 point guards in the league. If not, he's just barely missing the cut. However, he strikes me as being too mercurial to be a franchise player, or a key player to hold onto while a team tries to rebuild.
