Rajon Rondo will be in orange and blue by the Feb. 20 trade deadline, if the New York Knicks have their way.
But they probably won’t, for once.
Despite the Knicks’ continued interest in the 27-year-old point guard, the Boston Celtics have “no interest” in any trade assets the Knicks could offer, according to a report. Rondo is still considered Boston’s most valuable trade chip around the league, but Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge hasn’t made a lot of calls, Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders reports.
“A source with direct knowledge of the situation has informed Basketball Insiders that the Celtics have demonstrated little activity as it relates to potentially moving Rondo at the deadline,” Greene writes. “The team has stopped short of giving Rondo a no-trade guarantee but has made it clear it would take a substantial offer to deal away its floor general.”
The Knicks reportedly maintain the strongest interest, but Iman Shumpert and whatever far-off draft picks New York would offer rightfully don’t interest the Celtics. Boston could have as many as 10 first-round picks in the next five years; the Knicks, as a result of a bunch of awful trades, have no first-round picks this year or in 2016, and they cannot trade their 2015 or 2017 first-rounders due to NBA rules.
Rondo is averaging 6.7 points, 5.7 assists and 3.3 turnovers per game while shooting 27.9 percent in six games. The Celtics are 0-6 with him in the lineup. Their lone victory since his return came with Rondo sitting out the second leg of a back-to-back against the Washington Wizards.
