NBA: After trading barbs, Bulls clear the air

Rajon Rondo #9 of the Chicago Bulls looks on during a time out in the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Jan. 12, 2017, in New York City. AFP

CHICAGO, United States — Rajon Rondo’s pointed response to the critical comments of Chicago Bulls teammates Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler won’t be a problem for the team going forward, Wade insisted Friday.

“Everyone gets opportunities to express themselves,” Wade said after the Bulls held a team meeting prior to a morning shootaround to prepare for Friday’s home game against his former team, the Miami Heat.

“That’s how (Rondo) chose to express himself… I have no hard feelings.”

Butler expressed similar thoughts.

“I don’t have any problem with Rajon,” Butler said. “He spoke his mind. I spoke my mind. Move on.”

Wade and Butler were harshly critical of their teammates after a 119-114 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.

“I’m 35 years old, man. I’ve got three championships. It shouldn’t hurt me more than it hurts these young guys,” Wade said after the Bulls’ late-game collapse. “They have to want it. … It has to change. It has to hurt inside to lose games like this.”

Butler echoed those remarks, saying teammates “just got to care if we win or lose.”

Rondo responded via Instagram on Thursday. The four-time All-Star, who won an NBA title with Boston in 2008, posted a picture of himself with former Celtics teammates Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, commenting, “My vets would never go to the media. They would come to the team.”

“The young guys work,” he wrote. “They show up. They don’t deserve blame. If anything is questionable, it’s the leadership.”

The Bulls fell to 23-24 after Wednesday’s defeat, and general manager Gar Forman said he was “extremely disappointed” to see players criticizing their teammates.

“We have visited with the players who spoke out at length and dealt with it internally,” Forman told reporters Friday. “We’ve talked about it with the entire team.” CBB