There appears to be trouble brewing between Rajon Rondo and the Dallas Mavericks. The tension that was exposed during the regular season has clearly boiled over to the playoffs as Rondo found himself riding the bench late during Game 2 against the Houston Rockets. The point guard is clearly not working like Mark Cuban had intended when he made the trade with the Boston Celtics. With free agency approaching, the chances Rondo returns to Dallas appear to be slim.
Rondo will be an unrestricted free agent this summer and everyone from ESPN to Yahoo Sports is reporting the point guard will not be back to the Mavericks. Cuban told the Dallas Morning News that he did not intend for the Rondo trade to be a short-term project and the team would offer an extension in the offseason, but now that does not appear to be the case.
Following his benching, head coach Rick Carlisle was in no mood to discuss the point guard. The two have not exactly been best friends this season as Rondo continues to clash with the coach. That tension does not seem to be disappearing any time soon.
"You have to ask him (whether he cared about being benched)," Carlisle said in a postgame press conference broadcast on NBA TV. "All I know right now is that we need everybody at their competitive best. This isn't about one guy who did or didn't play. This is about everybody pulling in the same direction for the organization. That's what it's about."
Despite his issues with the coaching staff and playoff disappearing act, Rondo is still at the top of a number of team's wish lists entering the offseason. According to the Los Angeles Times, Kobe Bryant is preparing to put on the heavy sell to Rondo while the New York Knicks would like to pair the point guard with Carmelo Anthony. They are ready to give up on Jose Calderon and take on Rondo instead. Speaking on the TNT pre show, Charles Barkley believes Rondo is simply going through the motions and preparing for free agency instead of trying to win a championship.
"He was not engaged whatsoever tonight," Barkley said. "If he is not going to play, then Rick (Carlisle) has an obligation to the other guys in that locker room. If he is just going to go through the motions, they have to move on."
The Dallas Morning News reported earlier that if Rondo were to exit, the Mavericks would chase players like Goran Dragic and Reggie Jackson to fill the void. Any team that misses out on Rondo will be looking for the same thing which will make competition high for the remaining point guards.
