Lewis Hamilton has come under fire after spending the majority of Thursdays pre-Japanese GP drivers press conference on his phone. The world champion appeared distracted and uninterested during the Suzuka press conference, taking pictures of himself as well as other drivers on mobile application Snapchat.Asked what he was doing on his phone by the media, the Brit, under pressure after falling 23 points behind team-mate Nico Rosberg, replied: Just some snaps of us drivers, its quite funny. Hey man, weve been doing this a long, long time and its the same each time. Weve got to keep adding new things to it.But Hamiltons antics werent well received by the British press, with the media accusing the 31-year-old of showing a lack of respect to Japanese fans. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just £6.99. No contract. I agree, the FIA press conference format is static, but you cant defend this, posted The Suns Ben Hunt.So apart from the lack of respect (which I dont expect people to get), when is it ok to swear on social media? Hardly good for the kids... Sky Sports F1 analyst Ted Kravitz says he does not understand Hamiltons behaviour The Times Kevin Eason, meanwhile, added: Think the world champion could have ditched the phone and concentrated a little harder for the benefit of the huge Japanese audience.Hamilton, however, responded to such remarks, claiming: Today was meant to be fun, not at all disrespectful. Some people take themselves too seriously. I had a blast, highlight of my day!Re press conference, its been the same for 10 years. Its not the media or mediator, its the format. Fans should be asking the questions!! Supporters of Hamilton have also defended the three-time champion, suggesting that his Snapchats were more entertaining than the press conference itself, as well as praising his fan interaction.And on whether questions from fans through social media would help breathe new life into the Thursday proceedings, Sky F1s Martin Brundle added: Some will be nervous of being unprepared but if questions are good and pertinent then absolutely why not, Hamilton lost ground in the Drivers Championship after his engine blow-out from the lead in Malaysia, and Mercedes have now confirmed that the cause of the fault was a bearing failure. At Suzuka, he will revert to the engine he used at the previous race in Singapore. Hamilton was distracted at the news conference in Japan as he took photos of the drivers Hamilton, who insisted he hasnt even thought about the Sepang race since, also dismissed fan conspiracy claims after posting a heartfelt message to his Mercedes team on Instagram.They [fans] can just go on my Instagram, I put all my feelings on there, he said. If you see my post, you see how passionate I am about this team. Also See: Hamilton suffered big end failure Get a Sky Sports weekend pass The Formula 1 Gossip column The 2016 schedule and TV times Tommy Joseph Jersey . - Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II says the NFL has told the team it will not be docked a pick in this years draft for coach Mike Tomlins foray onto the field against Baltimore last November. Tim McCarver Jersey . -- Michael Phelps is 0 for 1 in his comeback to the pool. http://www.cheapphilliesjerseys.com/ .ca. Kerry, I hope you address Ron MacLeans comment during the second intermission of Game 4 in Montreal-Tampa series. Basically, he suggested that the NHL should not have used a referee from Quebec, following the Game 3 disputed non-goal, because the referee could be biased towards Montreal. Cheap MLB Jerseys Authentic . - Dolphins safety Louis Delmas has been carted off the field with a right knee injury against the Ravens. Cheap Philadelphia Phillies Jerseys . And theyre pointing to the NHLs biggest market: Toronto. With Gretzky paid out for what is believed to be $7 to 8 million, Gretzky may be eager to get back into the NHL and TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reports that the Maple Leafs are very much interested in The Great Ones services.BOSTON - Letting Doc Rivers go to the Los Angeles Clippers was the first sign. Getting rid of Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett clinched it. The Boston Celtics are rebuilding. The Celtics have agreed to the terms of a deal that would send the two remaining members of the Big Three that won the 2008 NBA title to the Brooklyn Nets for a package of draft picks and players. Garnett is a future Hall of Famer, but its Pierces departure that signals the end of an era for the leagues most-decorated franchise. Garnett and Pierce will go to Brooklyn as soon as the deal can be finalized on July 10. Yahoo Sports, which first reported the talks, said the Nets would also get veteran Jason Terry from Boston and send Gerald Wallace, Kris Joseph, the expiring deal of Kris Humphries and first-round picks in 2014, 2016 and 2018 to the Celtics. Boston is left with Rajon Rondo, Jeff Green and Avery Bradley, along with Jared Sullinger and first-round draft pick Kelly Olynyk, a 7-footer from Gonzaga. "Its sad to see everybody leave Boston. You just want them to go someplace where they have a chance to win, and they have," Rivers said at Clippers draft headquarters late Thursday night. "Its a great trade for Boston, too; not now, later. Danny wanted to rebuild, and thats what hes doing." The longest-tenured member of the Celtics, Pierce is the teams captain, a 10-time All-Star and a likely Hall of Famer. He is the second-leading scorer in the history of the NBAs most-decorated franchise, and also is in the teams top seven in rebounds, assists, steals, games and minutes played. Garnett is also a future Hall of Famer, though only the last six years of his career were in Boston. Its Pierce, who slipped to 10th in the 1998 draft and has been a Celtic ever since, who had a chance to spend his entire career with the franchise and add his name to a list that includes Hall of Famers Larry Bird, Bill Russell and John Havlicek. (But not Bob Cousy, Robert Parish or even Red Auerbach.) "(Its) sort of sad. You hate to see it," said Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, who was an assistant on the Celtics 2008 championship team. &"But thats the NBA.dddddddddddd Its constant change, and you have to be ready to adapt. I think what Paul Pierce did for that franchise and Kevin — I thinks its good for them. They have an opportunity to continue on. "Good for the Celtics, where they can start their rebuilding." Pierce was drafted in the Rick Pitino era when the Celtics, already in the midst of the longest championship drought in franchise history, were a year removed from the second-worst record in the NBA (a mark that was not good enough to land them the top prize in the draft, Tim Duncan). He helped the team reach the Eastern Conference finals in 2002. But, convinced that they were not likely to go farther, Ainge was brought in the next year to tear things apart again. Boston plummeted back into the NBA lottery and again bad luck prevented them from landing a franchise player like Kevin Durant. Instead, Ainge swung deals for Garnett and Allen that earned the Celtics their NBA-record 17th championship in the very first year. But Garnett was injured the next year, and Kendrick Perkins went down in Game 6 of the finals in 2010, when the Celtics lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games. Then came two eliminations by Miami and, after five straight division titles, a third-place finish and first-round loss to the New York Knicks. Ainge was convinced that the time had come to start over. Rivers exit was negotiated with the Clippers, landing Boston a first-round draft choice in 2015 and freeing the Celtics from the $21 million remaining on his contract. Tim Hardaway, a scout for the Miami Heat, said: "We dont have to worry about Boston no more." Not next year, at least. But the Celtics will have two first-round picks in four of the next five drafts, including the loaded one expected for next year. "The Celtics wanted draft picks and they wanted to drop contracts. I was one of those contracts," Rivers said from California on Friday in an interview with CBS radio in Boston. "Its a hard thing to do, but I think its the right thing to do." ___ Follow Jimmy Golen on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/jgolen ' ' '