Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

Celtics guard Rajon Rondo is now Rajon GONEdo.

Clever, no?

Boston will be without their all-star point guard for the remainder of the season after he tore his ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) during Friday’s double-overtime loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

Rondo made an effort to play in yesterday’s matinée game against the Miami Heat, but he was sent to the hospital after complaining of leg pain during the pre-game warmups, where he was later diagnosed with this serious injury.

Losing Rondo for the rest of the season could be the final nail in the coffin for Boston’s championship aspirations in 2013.

He was averaging a double-double of 13.7 points and 11.1 assists (best in NBA), as well as 5.6 rebounds a game before he got hurt. He will now likely join Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson and Chris Paul as the only players in NBA history to average 13/5/11 (points/rebounds/assists) in a season.

By the way, he’s also leading the league in triple-doubles (5), which is three more than the next guy.

You can’t just replace that kind of production overnight.

The Celtics will likely use a three-man rotation of Courtney Lee, Leandro Barbosa and Jason Terry at point guard for the time being. All three individuals are more or less shooting/hybrid guards, so it will be interesting to see if one player can stand out and become a facilitator at the point for the rest of the season.

On a surprising note, Boston has actually been quite successful over the past four seasons without Rondo in the lineup, achieving a record of 20-13, which is a slightly better winning percentage than when he’s on the court. That also includes the Celtics big 100-98 victory over the defending NBA champions yesterday afternoon.

That’s just one game. A season was never made or broken in  January.

Even with a record that’s two games under .500 at 21-23, Boston still holds a two and a half game lead over the Philadelphia 76ers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The roster remains talented enough to qualify for the postseason, but without Rondo, their ceiling is probably the second round at best, and even that might be pushing it.

Is it time to blow things up? Should Danny Ainge perform a fire sale on the roster? Everything must go? Of course, by everything, I really mean aging Celtic players like Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.

Hell no.

Rondo was just voted in as a starter for the Eastern Conference all-star team, so losing him is obviously going to hurt, but the Celtics aren’t screwed.

Life has become more difficult, but it’s not a lost cause.

This team won’t go down without a fight. Their veterans won’t allow that to happen. I’m positive of that.

Neither will coach Doc Rivers. He’s a proud man who has seen this team overcome far worse circumstances in the past.

Besides, this summers NBA Draft isn’t worth tanking away the year for and selling your parts. From what’s being predicted, there aren’t a heck of a lot of franchise-changing talents entering the draft, so what’s the point?

Boston needs to stay the course. Maybe a small roster move to acquire a true point guard could be in the cards, but I don’t see this team going on a mission before the February 21st trade deadline in order to keep the team afloat just because Rondo is gone.

The Chicago Bulls found success without former MVP Derrick Rose, so why can’t Boston do the same with their point guard on the sidelines too?

For the past few seasons, the Celtics have come out of the gate rather slowly, but always seem to turn it on once All-Star weekend has come and gone. I expect to see the same sort of results this season too.

There will no doubt be some pains along the way. Rondo made this offense run. Garnett/Pierce aren’t in the position to be creating their own offense anymore at this stage of their illustrious careers. Rondo made life easier for everyone, and him not having the ball in his hands directing the flow and pace of the game for Boston is going to suck, plain and simple.

However, it’s not season suicide, so let’s get that straight.

They won’t be contending for an NBA Championship, but they certainly won’t be an easy out come April.

Chris Walder is the Editor here at Sir Charles in Charge. You may follow him on Twitter at @WalderSports

Mandatory Credit: Kevin Liles-USA TODAY Sports

It appears that the second-leading scorer in Boston Celtics franchise history may be on the market.

According to a report by Ken Berger of CBS Sports, Danny Ainge is very much open to the idea of trading “The Truth” Paul Pierce, if the right deal presented itself.

Team executives involved in exploratory trade talks report that the Knicks (Amar’e Stoudemire), Lakers (Pau Gasol), Raptors (Bargnani) and Celtics (Paul Pierce) are open to discussing their high-profile names. In every case but one, the early indications are that none could be moved without a bad contract going back in return. (In Stoudemire’s case, his health and the $45 million left on his contract after this season almost certainly will prevent any deal from happening.) The lone exception, executives say, may be Pierce, whose ruthless scoring prowess and championship experience come with another attractive feature: only $4 million of his $15.3 million salary is guaranteed next season.

The Celtics are currently riding a five-game winning streak, but only find themselves two games over .500 with a record of 19-17. That’s good enough for the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference.

This isn’t the first time rumors have swirled of a possible Pierce trade. There were reports last April that Paul was nearly sent to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Mehmet Okur’s expiring contract, as well as a potential lottery pick in that summer’s draft.

Through 36 games, Pierce is averaging 19.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists while shooting a little under 44% from the field. Those numbers remain in the ballpark of what he’s been putting up over the last four seasons.

Even at 35 years of age and no longer in the prime of his career, Paul still remains a valid scoring option on the offensive end.

As Ken Berger mentioned in his piece, Pierce is set to make $15.3 million during the 2013-14 season, but only $4 million is actually guaranteed. That could be very attractive to some teams looking to acquire his services.

Despite all of that, it’s almost baffling to think the Celtics are desperate enough to improve their team that trading away a player who has been with the franchise for 15 seasons is reasonable in their minds.

Eventually, Danny Ainge is going to have to move on and start anew with this roster. Pierce is 35 and teammate Kevin Garnett is 36. Age is always a major concern in the NBA. How much longer can he roll with those two veterans as the focal point of the team?

Still, the Boston Celtics without Pierce is like the San Antonio Spurs without Tim Duncan or the Los Angeles Lakers without Kobe Bryant.

It doesn’t look right.

Just because Paul Pierce is being made available to potential trading partners, doesn’t necessarily mean he will be moved before the February 21st trade deadline. The deal would have to be beyond perfect in order for Ainge to let go of a true Celtics legend (and yes, Pierce has hit that level of success in Boston).

Do I believe it will happen? Well, the Celtics have come on as of late, especially with the return of defensive swingman Avery Bradley. I still wouldn’t pick them to knock off the Miami Heat in the postseason though.

While a actual deal is highly improbable, you can never say never in the NBA.

Chris Walder is the Editor for Sir Charles in Charge. You may follow him on Twitter at @WalderSports