Lakers Rumors: Going After Rajon Rondo

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. The NBA isn’t quite as intense as The Godfather, but the trade market and free agency warrant the use of that iconic phrase.

In this case, it means keeping your most bitter of rivals on speed dial.

According to Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Lakers are already weighing their trade and 2015 free agency options. Whether or not that means giving up franchise player Kobe Bryant has yet to be seen, but Los Angeles’ interest has shifted in a surprising direction.

The target: Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo.

"There is one player who makes sense in LA next season: Rajon Rondo. Several rival executives believe the Lakers will make a strong run at Rondo next summer, and it’s easy to see why. Rondo is young (28), plays a critical position and shares the same win-at-all-bleeping-cost attitude as Bryant."

Bitter rivals. NBA Finals mainstays. Trade partners?

It’d be stunning to see a player go from one end of the Celtics-Lakers rivalry to the other, let alone a key star. Nevertheless, Los Angeles appears keen on not only targeting, but potentially acquiring Rondo.

It’s not hard to see why.

Mr. Triple-Double is a target for every team that enjoys elite ball movement.

Rondo, 28, is a four-time All-Star and four-time All-Defensive Team selection. He also led the NBA in assists in both 2012 and 2013, and was the steals leader in 2010.

A knee injury limited him in 2012-13 and 2013-14, but Rondo is back to doing what he does best: stuffing the stat sheet and making his teammates look better than they are.

Including a 38-game 2012-13 campaign, Rondo averaged at least 11.1 assists in three consecutive seasons from 2010 to 2013. No other player put up at least 10.0 assists in every one of those seasons.

In his 30 games in 2013-14, Rondo ranked behind just Chris Paul in points created via assists per game, per NBA.com. He finished with 9.8 assists in 33.3 minutes.

When it comes to the postseason, where L.A. would value him most, Rondo elevates his game to an entirely different level.

Rondo has career averages of 14.5 points, 9.2 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals in 92 playoff games. In the most recent series he played, he scored 44 points in Game 2 and dropped 22 points, 14 assists, 10 rebounds and a steal in Game 7 against the eventual NBA champion Miami Heat.

He’s also one of the most competitive players in the league, bordering on superhuman with his tolerance for pain.

Warning: graphic injury.

Words can’t describe that.

Should the Lakers acquire Rondo, it’d take mountains of pressure off of Kobe Bryant. Bryant could play off-ball and focus more on scoring and defense, while Rondo would facilitate the offense and put his teammates in the proper places.

The question is, would he and Bryant get along?

Something says yes.

It’s a strange relationship. It could also be a glorious one in Los Angeles.

If the Lakers were to somehow nab Rondo, it’d be a franchise-altering move.