11/21/24
December 18, 2014
The Boston Celtics have traded Rajon Rondo to Dallas: Rondo and forward Dwight Powell have been swapped for Center Brandan Wright, Forward Jae Crowder and whatever is left of PG Jameer Nelson.
posted by Ufez Jones to basketball at 09:19 PM - 9 comments
I really doubt Nelson stays around - he specifically left Orlando to play for a contender. This seems like the kind of situation where he either gets waived or moved again. That said, the way he played in Dallas, I don't see a lot of playoff-worth teams who'll get a big upgrade by dealing assets to get him.
The first-rounder is reported to be heavily protected and very likely to be 2016 or further and there's not much chance of it being mid-round or earlier. So the likely outcome is a development player who's a couple of years from contributing heavily.
Wright's a niche player - Crowder is more or less a straight wing, with little upside at the 2. Powell's a body.
I think the way Rondo had played this year, the haul they got was more or less what they could expect. It doesn't seem like it's the kind of haul you'd get for a guy with the potential for star play that Rondo has, but a bit like Vince Carter leaving Toronto (with the added deflator of a big, recent injury), if the player isn't playing up to their potential and they're pretty publicly looking to get out, it does tie your hands a little bit.
posted by dfleming at 07:26 AM on December 19, 2014
Olbermann tweets:
From #Colbert Farewell: @MarkCuban finalized Rondo deal in green room, sitting w/Waterston, Daniels, me + dismaying UN Amb. Samantha PowerI can't stop chuckling at the idea of the United States Ambassador to the United Nations getting upset with Cuban backstage at a comedy news show with DA Jack McCoy and Lloyd from Dumb and Dumber in the background.
posted by Etrigan at 09:33 AM on December 19, 2014
That said, the way he played in Dallas, I don't see a lot of playoff-worth teams who'll get a big upgrade by dealing assets to get him.
It's almost like you think the starting PG of a high-powered offense shouldn't finish a game with 0 points and 0 assists.
The crazy thing about this whole ordeal is that even with the pieces Dallas has acquired, they're still arguably the 3rd or 4th best team in the Southwest Division. The Western Conference playoffs are going to be especially brutal this year.
posted by Ufez Jones at 09:45 AM on December 19, 2014
If they finalized the deal in time, Brandan Wright would be tradeable again by the trade deadline and I think he would pull a decent haul. Wright is limited in what he can do but extraordinarily good at scoring efficiently and not turning the ball over. That's a lot more valuable to playoff teams than it will be to the Celtics over the next few years.
I don't really like the trade for the Mavs as it tinkers with the league's best offense and I don't think Rondo will do much to help their defense. Ultimately, I trust Carlisle to make it work but it's not a trade I would have made.
posted by tron7 at 11:26 AM on December 19, 2014
I don't really like the trade for the Mavs as it tinkers with the league's best offense and I don't think Rondo will do much to help their defense. Ultimately, I trust Carlisle to make it work but it's not a trade I would have made.
Zach Lowe over at Grantland (who is doing some of the best basketball analysis (not-stats-heavy division) out there, to my mind) seems to agree with respect to the offense:
The Mavs offense lives on ball movement and spacing; Monta Ellis has thrived as the lead ball handler, but he's also a killer passer, and the Mavs are at their best when they're pinging the ball to shooters dotting the perimeter. Rondo is a non-shooter, and as a result, he has almost always had the ball in Boston.He also seems to agree with respect to the defense, for that matter.The Mavs were quietly comfortable parting with Shawn Marion in the offseason because they were sick of watching the Matrix's man clog the paint while he lurked in no-man's-land along the baseline. That's exactly where Rondo likes to hide when he doesn't have the ball. And when he's had it, at least in Boston, he has liked to dribble it around one screen, then another, then under the hoop and around the other end. That would not jibe well with the Mavs' sharing.
posted by holden at 12:38 PM on December 19, 2014
I haven't followed the Mavericks closely this season but on the surface I like the deal. Cuban isn't afraid of taking risks to maximize the chances for another title while Dirk is still playing.
I'd worry more about the loss of draft picks if the Mavs didn't have such a well-documented history of never building the team with them. The only draft pick in Cuban's entire tenure who became a meaningful contributor to the team was Josh Howard.
posted by rcade at 01:07 PM on December 19, 2014
An update about the Celtics without Rondo. They started Turner at the point, much to my surprise, but that might have had something to do with the size of the guards for Minnesota. Turner had a turnover early in the game, but then he settled down and had only 1 more for the game. From the outset the Celtics were pushing the ball up the floor, the offense was moving without the ball, and the ball was finding its way down low. This is the offense that Coach Stevens wants to run, but it did not always happen. Blame Rondo for slowing things down if you must, but it seemed that everyone else moved better off the ball than they had.
Marcus Smart had limited minutes in the first half, but he was on the floor in a close game late. Once he found his rhythm he began to take over a bit, hitting a couple of threes, making several good entry passes, and working the pick-and-roll a couple of times for assists on easy layups by Zeller and Bass. Unless there are further moves made from the Celtics backcourt, Jameer Nelson might find himself relegated to the splinter inspector on the bench. Between Turner, Pressey, Smart, and Bradley you have 3 point guards (Turner, Pressey, Smart) and 3 shooting guards (Turner, Bradley, Smart). This is not to say that any of them is as good at one of the guard spots as he is at the other, but all are serviceable. It also gives the opportunity to go to a 3-guard setup in order to harass the perimeter shooters on the other team.
As good as Rondo had been on defense, Smart makes up for it. He's quick, quite strong, and has some anticipation for where the ball might go. He's raw, but he looks like a fast learner. All in all, the Celtics in the short term will be no better nor worse without Rondo. I will bet that Dallas gets somewhat better, but I agree with tron7 and Zach Lowe that this is not the trade that puts Dallas into the Western Conference finals.
One last thing. I went to the game to have a look at Andrew Wiggin. My rheumatologist is a Kansas grad and was really hoping Wiggin would somehow fall to the Celtics. Wiggin left me thoroughly unimpressed. I barely knew when he was on the floor as the rest of the team did not involve him in the offense. He did nothing outstanding on defense either. The Kevin Love deal looks worse and worse every game.
posted by Howard_T at 02:24 AM on December 20, 2014
I want to have something smart to say here but I've got nothing. I think it's a pretty good deal for the Celtics given everyone knew they were selling, Rondo's contract status and his divisiveness-- not so much the personality as the fact half the GMs in the league would look at his game and think the minuses are too much to take on.
Personally, I will miss the crazy bastard and I will have to tune into some Mavs games. I loved him and the prickliness. The (main) problem with him, and why the Celtics had to sell low, is he has to be interested to put in the effort that leads to great performances. The most oft-quoted stat is his performances in nationally-televised games. Just about all of his triple doubles happen in games where a lot of people are watching. That's the kind of thing I should ignore as a cold-hearted stats lover, but it's a hell of a coincidence when those happen to be the games against the toughest competition, often playoff or Finals games. If the Mavs can keep him interested, I think he is a positive on the defensive side. When he's pissed, he's a hell of an on-ball defender, a pest. Jackie MacMullan said post-trade she thought he'd return to his old self now instead of doing the "Olé!" reach-around defense he had been settling for since the Big Three broke up.
I'm happy for the Celtics that this is over and they got a decent haul, especially if they can flip some of the players for future assets. I'm happy for Rondo as the team feels like a good fit, though I'd love to see him play for Popovich some day just to watch the media go nuts. Be interesting to see the next Clippers/ Mavs game.
posted by yerfatma at 08:55 AM on December 22, 2014
Talking heads in Boston were falling all over themselves talking about how Rondo was not helping the team, was playing badly -- perhaps on purpose -- and it was about time the got rid of him. In the next breath, these same guys were bitching and moaning that the Celtics had not gotten enough for him. Dwight Powell's main function was to remove splinters from the bench using his ass. Why Dallas wanted him is beyond me, but it probably has something to do with cap hits. Jameer Nelson is here to fill in until Marcus Smart is physically ready to play heavy minutes every night. Until then look for Phil Pressey to pick up a lot of minutes. Oddly enough when Pressey was at the point instead of Rondo, the team played faster and better. Pressey's problem is that he is about 5'10" tall.
Brandan Wright might have some use, but he is a bit undersized for a center, and the power forward/center spot in Boston is rather crowded. His contribution remains to be determined. Jae Crowder might be the excuse to move Evan
TurnoverTurner, but I don't know if Crowder can play the 2-guard spot as well as the small forward. I'll probably go to the game tomorrow night, although I doubt any of the new additions will see any time. It's mostly to get a look at Andrew Wiggin.Hey, we get a $12.9 Million trade exception, a 1st round pick, and a 2nd rounder for all this. The picks will be well down in the order, barring disaster in Dallas, but with all the picks Ainge has accumulated in the past couple of years, he can probably move some of the down-table stuff for the lottery. As long as the team doesn't try to jump into the same tank as Philadelphia, I'm OK with it.