Bob Ryan's take on Rondo, Ainge and speculative talk

[campybatman]

Actually, Ryan's wrong on one point. Below he writes, "Number of All-Star Game appearances for these 14 gentlemen: 1 (one), Sam Cassell, 2004." He's incorrect, BJ Armstrong was an All-Star in 1994 as a starter in fact. I knew that right away. It was he, Pippen and Horace Grant representing Chicago that season.

As good as Rondo is, he can get better. And there are better players, and also plenty more close enough to him that he could be replaced. There are quite a few very nice point guards these days, and not just the old reliables such as Jason Kidd (36), Steve Nash (35), and Chauncey Billups (32), nor the accepted inner circle of younger point guards such as Paul (23), Deron Williams (24), Tony Parker (27), and, of course, the scary Derrick Rose (20).

You’ve got Jose Calderon (28), Jameer Nelson (27), Mo Williams (26), and Devin Harris (25). You’ve got Raymond Felton (25), Aaron Brooks (24), and Mario Chalmers (23). Is Gilbert Arenas a point guard? He’s still only 27. No one knows what Monta Ellis is, either, but he’s very talented and he’s just 24.

There would be a couple of reasons why Danny could be marketing Rondo. The first is that the entire basketball world did, in fact, sit there with jaws dropping watching Rondo do some of the things he did. Some GM out there might have been so enraptured with Rondo that he might do something foolish that would work to the Celtics’ advantage. You never know about those things.

The second reason is even more intriguing. Among the things Ainge told the WEEI audience yesterday was that, in his view, you don’t need a killer point guard to win an NBA championship. He cites himself and Dennis Johnson as examples, but there are better ones, for sure.

The Bulls won six titles with point guards such as B.J. Armstrong, John Paxson, Craig Hodges, Ron Harper, and Randy Brown. The Rockets won a pair of titles with Sam Cassell, Scott Brooks, Kenny Smith, and Vernon Maxwell. San Antonio won its first title with Avery Johnson. The Lakers have won four championships with Harper, Brian Shaw, Tyronn Lue, Lindsay Hunter, and, of course, Derek Fisher.

Number of All-Star Game appearances for these 14 gentlemen: 1 (one), Sam Cassell, 2004. As a Minnesota Timberwolf.

So beware. None of us wants to see Rajon Rondo go anywhere. We’re all looking forward to seeing him put that ball behind his back and pull it out, squeezing up those floaters in the lane, and throwing down those dunks over people for the next 10-12 years.

But it’s not our call. It’s Danny’s, and if he thinks trading Rajon Rondo will make the Celtics a better team, he won’t hesitate to do it.

http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball ... do/?page=2

[MyInsatiableOne]

Good article by Bob...

[Al-Haqq]

After listening to Rondo being interviewed he didn't mind if he got traded because it's part of the "business", meanwhile guys like BBD are saying that they want to stay in Boston.

In addition Ainge said Rondo needs to grow up in some areas so maybe there's some ill feelings, but it's definitely not honky dory.

[Edug27]

Very good article. But lets not forget, Rondo only had those postseason numbers because of the absense of KG, and a bunch of overtime games vs Chicago. He only avg'ed 11 and 8 for the year. So its too early to compare him to Chris Paul, etc ... until he can post 20 and 11 throughout an 82 gm season, like Paul does. But I hope Ainge keeps Rondo, he can be an elite PG, and hes extremely young.

[17banners]

After listening to Rondo being interviewed he didn't mind if he got traded because it's part of the "business", meanwhile guys like BBD are saying that they want to stay in Boston.

In addition Ainge said Rondo needs to grow up in some areas so maybe there's some ill feelings, but it's definitely not honky dory.

I got the same feeling after listening to it a couple of times. Obviously, the NBA is a business, but he sure didn't act like he cared one way or another if he was dealt.
And Ainge definitely shouted out some tough love on him, and sounded somewhat frustrated with him.

[pac213up]

I think the point that you do not need a great PG to win is valid for all positions. You could find multiple examples where teams did not have a great Center for example or a great Small Forward. The other point is the teams he mentioned all had tremendous talent at it's peek unlike the Celtics who have solid talent towards the end of the their career. The Lakers had a young Kobe and Shaq, The Bullls a young Jordan and Pippen and the Rockets had a young Hakeem. Position is irrelevant in these situations. I guess based on his evaluation you do not need a standout Center either as the last two Champions have had average players at this position.

[wigglestrue]

I think the point that you do not need a great PG to win is valid for all positions. You could find multiple examples where teams did not have a great Center for example or a great Small Forward...I guess based on his evaluation you do not need a standout Center either as the last two Champions have had average players at this position.

Hmmm, that seems like a fantastic point.

Spurs won titles without a great SF or C.
Rockets won titles without a great PF.
Bulls, Rockets, Lakers won without a great PG.
80's Celtics and Lakers won without a great SG.

So by that logic of "what position can you get away with having a non-great player"...
You don't need a killer PG/SG/SF/PF/C to win an NBA championship. QED, lol.

[campybatman]

Why are certain fans discrediting Rondo's initial triple-double average during the playoffs this season? I'm impressed whenever Rondo scores in double digits, but his assist and rebounding statistics are capable of getting up regardless if Garnett is in or out. I don't get the sentiment of him "stepping up" during that round. I thought he'd did what he would've normally did: Take advantage of a mismatch. Rose couldn't guard Rondo, nor could his backups. I mean it was revealed that both Pierce and Ray weren't 100% and likely were tired (neither will probably admit this) from playing so many minutes during the regular season. So Rondo became the most consistent option once the light went off that he can get have his way offensively against Chicago's guards. The Bulls didn't really adjust to his surge.

[wigglestrue]

Why are certain fans discrediting Rondo's initial triple-double average during the playoffs this season?

This:

I mean it was revealed that both Pierce and Ray weren't 100% and likely were tired (neither will probably admit this) from playing so many minutes during the regular season.

Those certain fans don't want to confront that possibility, and especially not the even worse possibility that it wasn't merely fatigue but also an overestimation of how good Pierce and Ray are nowadays. Hence, a triple double becomes just a bunch of rebounds the guy has no business hoarding for himself. Hence, acrobatic cherry-picking to "expose" his ridiculously strong stats.