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Thursday, November 29, 2012

Rondo Shows He Isn't Ready

The Atlantic Division is wide open right now.  The New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets are tied for the tops in said division, with Philadelphia one and a half and Boston two and a half games back, respectively.  This is when great players step up and others make stupid mistakes.  Last night showed me something, Rajon Rondo is not ready to be "the guy" on a team. 

Don't get me wrong, Rondo is a fabulous player and top twenty in the league no doubt.  The problem with him is he seems to have trouble keeping his attitude in check.  He doesn't hog the ball (a 37 game streak with ten plus assists was snapped because of the brawl on Wednesday), he seems to want to win, but he lacks that maturity it takes to be a team leader.  What would Rondo be without Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce?  Not a fair question to ask since he has become great with them, but his actions over the last two years have made me question.

Before last night there were questions of Rondo's character on the Celtics.  It was said that his relationship with Ray Allen was very sour.  It isn't a new thing to have teammates not getting along, but Allen took half of the money to join the Miami Heat than what Boston offered him.  Rumors swirled saying that Rondo was a big part of Allen declining the offer from the Celtics.  When one of your key veterans, a Hall of Famer and a key element of your latest championship runs, wants to take less money to get out of town then you may have a problem.  Allen wasn't the only issue with Rondo.

Rondo's name has continuously come up in trade offers all last year.  It sure wasn't his play that was the reason they wanted to get rid of him, but his poor attitude.  It was said that he was too much to deal with and his talent wasn't worth dealing with his attitude.  There was talk he would be involved in a Chris Paul trade and also a Stephen Curry trade.  Albeit these are all rumors, but there are always some truth to these rumors.

Rondo is constantly getting into arguments with Garnett and Pierce.  Pierce is one of the most respected players in the game and Garnett is known as a very inspirational player.  When you have two veterans fighting with the young stud, there is something wrong.  It seems as if Rondo can't put his ego in check to grow as a player.  He has even had arguments with coach Doc Rivers, who is known as a coach most players love.

There was talk that he quit Team USA in 2010.  How are you trying to be one of the best players in the NBA (and the world) then quit when you have the chance to play alongside the best players anyone has to offer?  Don't you want to showcase your skills alongside the best point guards? 

Rondo did not think last night.  He may be suspended up to five games for pushing Kris Humphries into the third row.  He should know that anything going into the stands will cause ejections and suspensions.  I understand that he was coming to the aid of Garnett, but you let him fight his own battles.  He has learned the value of intimidation without the detriment of a suspension. 

Rondo is one of the top five most talented players in the NBA.  He has the possibility to put up a triple double every night.  Unfortunately, he is getting sucked into a zone he doesn't want to be a part of.  Just remember, a few years ago Vince Carter and Gilbert Arenas were thought of as two of the most talented in the game, but look how we remember them now.  Does Rondo want to be remembered as the greatest Celtic point guard of all time, or as the biggest waste of talent during a great Celtics era?  The biggest question is does he care?

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