Rajon Rondo is one of the top players in free agency this offseason and teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Houston Rockets and Sacramento Kings could be potential landing spots following his trade to the Dallas Mavericks, as the point guard is not expected to return as a free agent after a bad run with the team in the playoffs.
Rondo is hitting the market along with Goran Dragic, Reggie Jackson, Greg Monroe, LaMarcus Aldridge and Marc Gasol and those players should get the most attention from teams in free agency. Rondo is on the downside of his career and after the way things went in Dallas, he may need to work hard to get a max contract this summer. According to Marc Stein at ESPN, Rondo will have suitors this offseason, but he likely won't see offers in the price range he wants.
Stein writes that while Rondo is a very good player, he simply is not the player he was a few years ago with Boston and before his ACL injury. Rondo is still a solid defender and playmaker, but he is not a shutdown/All-Star type defender anymore and he has lost some of his explosiveness. The hard style of Rondo is falling by the wayside a bit in the NBA and that could leave him as the odd man out this summer depending on how teams work free agency.
The Knicks, Lakers and Celtics are expected to have the most money to spend and with Boston out of the mix for Rondo obviously, Los Angeles and new York could step up. According to Pro Basketball Talk, the Lakers are interested in signing Rondo, but only at a "certain price" and that may mean a discounted rate. Rondo is 29 years old and he will be 30 by the time next season ends and while the Lakers could be a good fit, they clearly do not want to break the bank on Rondo.
Dragic will get attention from the Lakers and Knicks, but it looks like he will be staying in Miami. Even if Dragic hits the market, the Heat can give him a max contract with more money and more years than anyone else. If Dragic signs, the market has Rondo and the Knicks also may chase Reggie Jackson, who was traded to the Pistons and is a restricted free agent. Rondo may have to wait for some dominoes to fall and if he wants to sign with the Lakers, which he reportedly does, he could ink a deal once Jackson and the other top free agents sign.
Rondo's numbers were down this season with nine points and eight assists per game, but that was still solid for a point guard playing the way he did on two teams this year. Rondo can still be a championship point guard, but perhaps to not the same extent he was in Boston. Last year Rondo averaged nearly 10 assists per game with 11 points per contest with the Celtics while playing in 30 games and he will be looking to improve wherever he signs next year.
