Rajon Rondo’s future is a topic that won’t be going away anytime soon.
Trade rumors have swirled around the Boston Celtics point guard since last summer, with the speculation only intensifying after the team declined to make any franchise-shaking moves this offseason.
Yet trading Rondo “is not a high priority” for the Celtics at this time, Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe wrote Sunday, as the team is more focused on trimming down its roster down to 15 players in time for the regular-season opener on Oct. 29.
Rondo “fully intends on taking the LeBron James-Carmelo Anthony tour of teams” once his current contract expires at the end of this season, according to Washburn, and is unlikely to sign a new deal before testing out free agency. Washburn added that the Celtics have yet to determine how the 28-year-old fits into their future plans and are “intrigued to see him in action a full 18 months following ACL surgery.”
Rondo returned to the court midway though last season but did so in a limited capacity. He played in 30 of the Celtics’ final 42 games, averaging 33.3 minutes per game (his lowest since 2008-09), and sat out the second end of back-to-backs.
All signs indicate Rondo now is back to full strength. He’ll lead a crowded Celtics backcourt this season that also includes the newly resigned Avery Bradley, draft picks Marcus Smart and James Young, and second-year pro Phil Pressey, who impressed in Rondo’s absence last season as an undrafted rookie.
Bradley, who is projected to start alongside Rondo to open the season, explained to Washburn the benefit of playing with Boston’s floor general.
“He has helped me a lot,” Bradley said. “It just shows, man, I just love playing with him. I know he’s happy here. I know he likes the whole organization and this is his home now and I know that he’s comfortable here and we’re all happy to have him here.”
