Rome defends question about lottery that led to Stern’s ‘beating your wife’ response

Jim Rome says he thought he was asking a “softball question” about the NBA draft lottery that led Commissioner David Stern to ask the radio host if he had stopped beating his wife.

Rome asked Stern whether the lottery was fixed. The New Orleans Hornets, recently sold by the league to Saints owner Tom Benson, won the No. 1 pick.

Stern responded that it wasn’t, and after some debate over the legitimacy of the question, Stern said: “Have you stopped beating your wife yet?”

Rome said later Wednesday on his TV show on CBS Sports Network that he didn’t take great offence, calling Stern’s phrase a “rhetorical device” that some fans may not understand but he did. He defended his question, saying he doesn’t believe the lottery is fixed but that it was fair to ask.