Boston Celtics star point guard Rajon Rondo has been the center of trade rumors the entire offseason. From the New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings, to the Dallas Mavericks, Rondo has been linked to almost every team in the NBA this summer. And when the Celtics picked Marcus Smart in this year's draft, everyone speculated that Rondo is heading to a new team before the season starts. But its less than a couple of weeks before the October 1 trade deadline and Rondo is still officially part of the Celtics roster. This could only mean one thing: Rondo is not going anywhere.
Perhaps the reason behind every Rajon Rondo trade rumor is that Rondo doesn't want to be part of a rebuilding Celtics team and will not resign with the team when he becomes an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2016. Of course, Danny Ainge, the Celtics President of Basketball Operations, wouldn't just let Rondo walk away for nothing in free agency which means that he will have to trade him just like what the Minnesota Timberwolves did with Kevin Love this offseason. Good news to Celtics fans though, Rojon is staying put and intends to resign with the team according to Sports Telegram:
"The truthful answer is I really don't know," Ainge insisted when asked on whether he is exploring trade options for Rondo. "I have no intention. I'm not trying to trade Rondo, but because he's a free agent this summer, he assured me that he wants to stay in Boston. We'd love to keep him in Boston."
Ainge already dismissed the rumors that he was trading Rondo to the Knicks and called them 'Ludicrous'. And if Rondo wants to stay then why bother trading him anyway? Why not just make him the cornerstone of your team? If Ainge' statement about Rondo assuring him that he is going to stay in Boston is true, then its highly likely that the Celtics will plan to build around him.
And while the Celtics are currently in the middle of a rebuild, they can easily get back into contention with just a few brilliant moves from Ainge. They have first round picks, non-guaranteed contracts, and young talented players still in their rookie contracts, which can be used to bring in a star or two in Boston. Just look at how the Celtics became instant contenders in a blink of an eye with the arrival of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in 2007 and its solid proof on how Ainge can turn the team around with a few brilliant moves.
There is no reason to believe that Danny Ainge cannot build a championship team around Rajon Rondo when he was able to do so with Paul Pierce 7 years ago. With that being said, maybe all these trade rumors are simply just, well, rumors and Ainge may just be planning to get the Celtics back into contention in a year or two by building a championship team around his star point guard.
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