Rajon Rondo Watch 2014 continues. The Boston Celtics point guard is working to regain form after returning to the court for the first time since injuring his ACL last season. With the return of Rondo comes speculation of a potential trade before the February deadline as plenty of teams would like to get their hands on the All-Star. While Danny Ainge continues to remain coy on what the future holds, Rondo notes that he would prefer to remain in Boston for his career.
Ainge and the Celtics confirm there have been discussions regarding a contract extension for Rondo. The point guard is set to become a free agent in 2015 and while a deal might not be done this offseason, the team plans on locking Rondo down for the future. The point guard will be entering the final year of his five-year, $55 million extension signed back in 2009. The new CBA makes an extension now fairly pointless, but Ainge plans on making sure a deal is done sooner rather than later.
"We did talk to Rondo about extending him," Ainge said, via 98.5 the SportsHub. "But that's all part of the negotiation that will happen again this summer and most likely the summer after. In the collective bargaining agreement, there are limits on what can and can't be done. Really, it's not that Rondo doesn't want to accept an extension, as much as it's just not financially smart for him to accept it right now. We didn't think he would [sign], but we did try."
Many wonder if Rondo would even be willing to sign a new contract with the Celtics. Boston is in a rebuilding time period after trading away Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Doc Rivers. Rondo is the last remaining piece and Ainge stresses he is the player to build a new roster around. Would Rondo be willing to take part?
"I like to stick to the script," Rondo said, via ESPNBoston.com. "I don't like change much. I wouldn't mind staying here the rest of my career. Things don't always seem to go that way, but like I said before, it's just a business. I wouldn't mind extending another 10 years in Boston."
Rondo said he would ideally like to remain with Boston until he decides to retire one day. The point guard is trusting his agents with the contract negotiating. Ainge said that he believes Rondo can make "star money" in free agency, but Rondo said he is making that money now so the urgency to sign a marquee contract is not really there.
