Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo has been the subject of trade rumors for a couple years and now he likely will come up again this season since he is heading towards free agency and teams like the Houston Rockets, LA Lakers, NY Knicks, Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers could be interested in a deal and this comes after Rondo suffered a broken hand while showering at his home that will keep from starting the season on time.
According to Pro Basketball Talk, Rondo broke his hand last week and the story that has been put out by the team is that he injured it while in the shower. ESPN.com reported that officials also knew that Rondo was at a trampoline park last week for his daughter's birthday, but they "believe the shower" story. Rondo has been mentioned in trade speculation this summer because he is heading towards free agency and while the owner of the Celtics has said he wants to keep Rondo long term, the two sides have not started working on an extension.
The Celtics may also consider trading Rondo due to the fact that they have Marcus Smart from the draft. According to Pro Basketball Talk, the Celtics and Rondo have cleared up everything with the injury and GM Danny Ainge said he expects to offer Rondo a max deal next summer. Clearly Rondo and the Celtics see the point guard going into free agency and while he will get wooed by teams, the Celtics also want to keep their star.
Smart was considered to be a potential top three talent in the draft had he come out a year earlier and now the Celtics have him after getting him at number six. The team likely would have had to trade up to get the dynamic guard and he comes in after a strong season as Oklahoma State. Smart is an athletic defender and he can also create his own shot and that makes him a very valuable piece to this puzzle for Danny Ainge. Some have said that the team could consider trading Rondo now since Smart played PG in college, but Ainge said he envisions the two playing together.
The Rockets have long been interested in Rondo and Stein writes that they could consider a Greg Monroe deal as well. The team doesn't have much cap maneuverability and that means Monroe is unlikely next year, but Morey has long been connected to Rondo and the Celtics and now it could be time to get a deal done. The Celtics have a major decision to make with Rondo coming up to free agency soon and if they don't sign him long term there is a good chance he will be traded. The Rockets went hard at Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh this offseason and they also traded away Jeremy Lin.
The Rockets, Knicks and Lakers all will be chasing Rondo and both LA and NY have money to spend. The two teams are putting themselves in position to have a ton of cap space and they will be going after Rondo if he can make it onto the free agent market in 2015.
