Report: Rajon Rondo To 'Keep An Open Mind' About Knicks In Free Agency

Rajon Rondo is having a bounce-back season and again is among the top tier of NBA point guards. He’ll hope to parlay that success into a lucrative contract in July, and the New York Knicks could be a possible destination.

Marc Berman of The New York Post reported Monday, citing a league source, that Rondo, who signed a one-year contract with the Sacramento Kings before the 2015-16 season, will “keep an open mind” about the Knicks when it comes to free agency this summer.

“According to the source, (Knicks president Phil) Jackson likes Rondo’s skill set a lot and feels he can mesh him into any system, triangle or no triangle,” Berman writes. “It seems bizarre with the Knicks desperate for a point guard this summer that Fisher would take a shot at Rondo, considering management’s view of the former Celtic.”

The Knicks’ need for a point guard is both a short- and long-term concern. Jose Calderon and the one year remaining on his contract that pays a bit less than $8 million annually is not the answer.

There will be a few good options in free agency, with Rondo and current Memphis Grizzlies floor general Mike Conley Jr. expected to be the top targets. Atlanta Hawks starting point guard Jeff Teague has been in the rumor mill leading up to Thursday’s trade deadline, and New York reportedly is interested in acquiring him, per ESPN’s Ian Begley. Teague’s contract doesn’t expire until the summer of 2017.

Rondo, as a pass-first point guard, would be a decent fit in New York. He knows how to find teammates in the right spots on the perimeter, especially on the fast break. This would bode well for a player like Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony.

It also should be noted that the Knicks don’t have their 2016 first-round draft pick. It was sent to the Toronto Raptors in the Andrea Bargnani trade. Therefore, New York probably will have to focus its attention to free agency and/or the trade market to find its next point guard.