Bulls pushing past Rondo's latest blowup

The Chicago Bulls are doing their best to move forward from point guard Rajon Rondo's blowup.

Rondo was suspended one game by the team after he reportedly threw a towel, then verbally confronted one assistant coach in the Bulls' loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday.

The Bulls then lost 112-110 to the Portland Trail Blazers without Rondo in the lineup Monday, spoiling the good vibes generated from their defeat of the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

Now the Bulls are trying to put the incident behind them ahead of their visit to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday.

"Let's play," Dwyane Wade told ESPN's Nick Friedell. "He's going to have enough messages. Our job is to say, 'Let's go, let's play.' We got to win the game (Tuesday). This is about basketball. All those things, it's not my job to stay on him about. He's been disciplined, they've talked about it, he understands and we've moved on."

Rising star Jimmy Butler, who rushed to Rondo's defense when the suspension first came down, backed up his point guard once again following the game.

"It's the NBA," Butler said. "That's what's asked of you. He's a professional. He wants this team, this organization, these guys to be successful. He's a winner, so he's coming in with the same mentality. I know that he was working out today, I can tell you that. Stay in a rhythm, your groove, we need you. He knows that. And we're glad to see his face on the plane."

Controversy followed Rondo in his last two stops before his move to Chicago. The Dallas Mavericks essentially exiled Rondo after he punted a playoff game in 2015. Months later, when Rondo was with the Sacramento Kings, the league suspended him one game for using a homophobic slur against referee Bill Kennedy.