Dallas Mavericks: Rajon Rondo Doesn’t Deserve A Max Contract
After attempting to prove why he’s worthy of a max, Dallas Mavericks point guard Rajon Rono has shown us the exact opposite this season
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Let’s ask ourselves this question: how many starting lead guards in the NBA is Dallas Mavericks point guard Rajon Rondo actually better then?
Off the top of my head, I can count 15 players at the point guard position that are better than Rondo: Jeff Teague, Derrick Rose, Kyrie Irving, Ty Lawson, Brandon Jennings, Stephen Curry, Chris Paul, Mike Conley, Brandon Knight, Russell Westbrook, Goran Dragic, Damian Lillard, Tony Parker, Kyle Lowry and John Wall.
Yeah, I know, we’re only in January, but I think it’s safe to say Rondo isn’t going to get a max contract from any team this summer.
It’s ironic how Rajon Rondo tried to play himself into a max contract by stat-padding like crazy, but he only ended up playing himself out of one. It’s laughable to even think Rondo is worth a max contract just by looking at some of the numbers he’s putting up this year: 9.1 points per game on 40 percent shooting.
If that’s not enough, he’s shooting 31 percent on his free throws so far this season. Yes, you read that right: 30.9 percent, to be exact. He’s made 5 of his 19 free throws since joining the Dallas Mavericks back in December.
Again, you read that right: 19 free throws in 19 games.
If Rondo keeps shooting free throws at this rate, he’ll be tied with the 4th worst FT percentage of any player that attempted at least 1 free throw per game and played at least 40 games in a season.
His assist average has gone down from 10.8, when he was in Boston, to 7.1 since he’s joined the Mavericks, mostly due to the fact that he doesn’t hold the ball as much he did on the Celtics. Instead, he’s played off the ball more than ever, allowing capable playmakers such as Monta Ellis run plays while he waits on the perimeter. And it seems to work well, as he’s shooting 39 percent on 3’s since joining the Mavericks, which would rank him somewhere in the top-40 in percentage.
But let’s not try to avoid the elephant in the room: the dude can’t shoot. There are times in fourth quarters when the Mavs have to pull Rondo out of the game in the fear of teams pulling a Hack-a-Rondo. That’s acceptable for centers, but certainly not for a point guard.
All of Rondo’s flaws – turnovers (he ranks 13th in the league in turnovers per game), bad FT shooting (discussed above), and the tendency to be a ball-stopper on offense have all reared their ugly head and showed up at the wrong time.
But this also goes beyond his play on the court: Rondo is known as a headcase for coaches and at times even his teammates (he was reported to be one of the main reasons Ray Allen left the Celtics). And although we haven’t seen him throw any temper tantrums yet, we still have three months left in the season, so it’s possible.
Remember when Rajon Rondo torched the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals back in 2012 to the tune of 20.9 points per game and 11.3 assists per game? If he were a free agent that summer, Rondo surely would’ve received a max offer from some team, perhaps even multiple.
But that was nearly three years ago, and unless that Rondo magically shows up again, the ship of him getting a max offer has sailed — and crashed.