There were “younger and more athletic” free agents compared to Rajon Rondo
Who’d you rather commit any big contract from among the available free agents at the time of Rondo’s signing?
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Evan Turner? Brandon Jennings? Harrison Barnes? Jeremy Lin?
If you look at what Rondo did for a Sacramento Kings roster that didn’t want to play their shooters around their best point guard and preferred a low post game matched with a fast break mentality, you’ll see that overall, Rondo did a heck of a job as a playmaker.
Rondo had 32 double-doubles last season with six triple-doubles as well. Who says his skill are crappy with age? If Rondo were not running the point for the Kings, they would have lost more than 49 games for babysitting DeMarcus Cousins at the expense of the team.
The Sacramento Kings were also the fastest offense in the NBA for pace at 102.2 while the Bulls were at a miserable 98.2. That’s probably a dead giveaway why the Bulls front office went all out for Rondo right away when he was passed over and they were not in a bidding war with anyone. He was the best fit among everyone available.
To emphasize how Rondo fits Hoiball to a T, the All-Star shot a career-best 36.5 percent from deep range last year; an achievement some say was an aberration because Rondo was padding his stats.
Don’t kid yourself.
That’s a player improvement from practice from someone who was never a reliable three-point threat. And if he was selfish about double-doubles and triple-doubles, Rondo still clocked an 16.9 player efficiency rating (PER) for the Kings, which means his game did not pull the team down when he was playing on the court.
Any more complaints about young and athletic?
Next: Rondo is a locker room cancer