Jim Rome-David Stern Interview: Stupid Questions Deserve Stupid Answers

First, let's set the stage. It was a mostly friendly interview between radio host Jim Rome and the NBA commissioner. Then, towards the end, Rome asked Stern, "Was the fix in for the lottery?" To this, Stern replied: "No. Shame on you for asking." Rome asserted the validity of the question, which prompted David Stern's money quote via The Big Lead: 

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"Have you stopped beating your wife yet?" 

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Rome kept on about it, and Stern eventually cut the interview short. Some criticized Stern for his lack of taste and hypocrisy in fining players for more benign quotes: 

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It's funny that the @NBA can discipline players for not cooperating with the media while their commissioner is the biggest ass of them all.

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"— Russ Bengtson (@russbengtson) June 13, 2012"

This is certainly a fair point, but I have no problem with the "beating your wife" quote itself. It's an obvious rhetorical tactic, and anyone with a brain can deduce that Stern isn't actually accusing the radio host of such a serious offense.

Jim Rome has no basis for asking Stern about this conspiracy theory other than "it's out there." There is no evidence to support the notion that the lottery is fixed, and asking about it lends legitimacy to an illegitimate theory. 

Could the commissioner have phrased his question with more sensitivity and tact? Sure, but it's live radio. Ultimately, I'm more annoyed with stupid questions than politically incorrect responses to stupid questions.