The Boston Celtics may look at a Rajon Rondo trade this season and teams like the NY Knicks, Houston Rockets, LA Lakers, Indiana Pacers and Sacramento Kings could be interested in making a move at the trade deadline, as Rondo is heading towards free agency and while Boston wants to keep him, it is no guarantee that he will stay once he hits the market.
Rondo has been playing well to start the season and his value could be getting very high heading towards the middle stretch of the season. Heading into the season the Celtics were mentioned in many media reports in conflicting stories, with some saying they would consider trading Rondo, while others claimed Danny Ainge would not. Now Pro Basketball Talk reports that Ainge has been telling other teams that the Celtics will not be looking to trade Rondo this year.
Rondo has expressed interest in staying in Boston and the team has said at times that they would like to sign him to a new deal. Rondo will be the top free agent target on the market next summer unless Kevin Love opts out and right now Rondo is in a Love situation. Love was heading towards free agency, which is why the Wolves pulled the trigger on his deal. Rondo came back from ACL surgery last season and played in 30 games and over the back stretch of the season he looked very good, averaging a double-double in points and assists over the final 12 games.
The PBT article writes that Howard Beck of Bleacher Report is reporting that Ainge has made it clear to other execs around the league that he is not looking to trade Rondo at this time. The quotes from Beck though also describe those same execs saying that they feel Ainge "has" to trade Rondo, as he should not risk losing him in free agency for nothing next year. Rondo has been one of the best point guards in the league when healthy and the Celtics likely will have a good chance of landing him back, as they have money to spend and could be on the way up in their rebuilding process.
Rondo reportedly will be asking for a max deal and that could be what the Celtics look to offer him if they don't trade him. There of course is the chance that the Celtics could still sign Rondo if they trade him, but that could end up being a risky move. Rondo has been playing well this year and teams in need of a legit PG could try and convince the Celtics to deal. This season Rondo is averaging 11.8 assists per game, 10.4 points and 8.0 rebounds and that is very impressive at his position.
The Knicks and Lakers are likely better options in free agency for Rondo, while the Kings and Pacers were rumored last summer to be interested in a deal. The Rockets, according to Marc Stein at ESPN, could be a dark horse, as they have a strong team this season and could look at Rondo as the missing championship piece. Rondo has looked healthy since coming back from a hand injury and some other ailments and if he continues to play this well, the Celtics will be getting tons of calls.
