Los Angeles Lakers: Would Rajon Rondo Fit?
The Rajon Rondo” href=”http://hoopshabit.com/category/los-angeles-lakers/”>Los Angeles Lakers are 12-31, far removed from this year’s playoff picture, and likely aren’t getting close to a return to relevance in the short-term. The team lacks playoff-caliber talent at basically every position, as evidenced in their 96-80 loss to a New Orleans Pelicans squad that currently sits only 10th in the Western Conference standings.
Rajon Rondo is the starting point guard on a playoff contending (and possibly championship contending) team in the Dallas Mavericks, surrounded by talents like Monta Ellis, Tyson Chandler, and the future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki.
He plays for an owner that is one of the best in the NBA at making sure his team is both relevant and competitive in Mark Cuban, and stands to make a nice sum of money from Dallas in the offseason.
So more than a few eyebrows get raised when the idea of Rajon Rondo leaving a good situation in Dallas to join the yet-to-rebuild Los Angeles Lakers comes up.
Even more questionable is Rajon Rondo’s potential fit on the Lakers. After all, this team will look different (note: different does not necessarily mean better) next season, and could possibly be without the legendary Kobe Bryant who has vowed to not stop recruiting Rondo until he signs elsewhere.
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Assuming that Bryant succeeds in his recruitment, how would Rajon Rondo fit with the Los Angeles Lakers?
Offensive Orchestrator
It’s fairly clear that, at this stage of his career, Rajon Rondo will never be a big scorer in the NBA. He won’t carry a team with his scoring, and will more often than not hover around the 10-12 points per game mark.
For a Lakers team that will eventually lose one of their two credible scoring threats in Kobe Bryant, this certainly doesn’t seem like a great investment in a league that features a ton of point guards that can both create for themselves and others.
However, at his best, few players in the league can create for their teammates like Rondo. This could be of particular interest for the Lakers as they are in dire need of more play makers for a roster that features few players that can consistently get their own shot.
Rajon Rondo averages 8.5 assists per game for his career, and could provide the type of point guard that the Lakers were expecting when they made the ill-fated Steve Nash deal.
Co-existing with Kobe Bryant could be difficult at times, given that at this stage of his career Bryant has turned into a distributor that is an extremely inefficient jump shooter. Playing off the ball is not Rondo’s strong suit as he can’t shoot well from distance (career 25.8% from three).
Given the Lakers roster situation, and Bryant’s inevitable retirement that seems like it’s going to come sooner rather than later, this issue is not something that would haunt them given Rondo secures a long-term deal.
Defensive Question Mark?
When he wants to, Rajon Rondo can be excellent on defense. He admitted he had been slacking off in Boston due to the rebuilding project, but he’s undoubtedly slipped a bit from the lockdown guy that we once knew.
Still, he rebounds the position as well as pretty much any point in the league. He’s averaging nearly 7 rebounds per game this season, and has a some games where he seems to be a bigger threat on the offensive glass than his team’s starting frontcourt.
At any rate, Rajon Rondo is an upgrade over anything the Lakers have on their current roster. Jeremy Lin is a defensive liability most of the time, Jordan Clarkson is still adjusting to the pro game, and Ronnie Price is above average at best.
Given the history of the purple and gold’s lack of ability to defend opposing point guards, even the thought of Rondo’s past performances gives them a better chance of improving at the position than anything they have currently.
Worth The Price?
Surely, Rajon Rondo will be seeking max dollars in his next contract. For Rondo, that number is likely to be around $18 million dollars in starting salary.
For a team starving for talent that number might not seem ridiculous, specifically given that the franchise is in position to add more talent around that salary. However, if a team felt it could build with Rajon Rondo, why did the Boston Celtics part ways with him for an extremely low return?
While he might be among the best at dishing out assists, he doesn’t score at the level required to be an elite-level NBA point guard, even if he may be seeking to be paid like one.
His defense, while likely an upgrade by the Lakers insanely low 2014-15 standards, is no longer stout enough to consider him outstanding at that facet of the game. Sure, he can still grab boards for his position, but the biggest issue for the Lakers has been stopping opposing point guards from wreaking havoc on them en route to countless drives to the basket.
In the end, Rajon Rondo would only be a welcome addition to the Lakers if the price was favorable.
Let’s hope Kobe can recruit and negotiate contracts.