The Los Angeles Lakers should avoid signing Rajon Rondo

The Los Angeles Lakers need a backup point guard in 2017 NBA free agency. Rajon Rondo is not that guy.

After last summer’s debacle to open free agency, the Los Angeles Lakers are staying quiet in 2017 NBA free agency, and that’s probably for the best. After adding four rookies, including second overall pick Lonzo Ball, the Lakers are continuing the full youth movement. With Ball manning the point guard position and the majority of their rotation under the age of 25, Los Angeles’ rotation seems set.

However, the Lakers do have one need left on the roster.

That’s the backup point guard spot. After Ball, the Los Angeles Lakers look bleak in that area after the D’Angelo Russell trade. They still have Jordan Clarkson, who can absorb some time as the ball-handler in a second unit, but he’s more an off-the-ball guard than a point guard. Adding someone who can spell Ball in spurts and still maintain balance on offense is the biggest need.

That man should not be Rajon Rondo, who was waived by Chicago earlier in the offseason, saving them $10.4 million in the process.

It’s not a talent issue for Rondo. Rondo is no longer the defender he was in his prime, but his ability to create for teammates is still solid. Rondo would be perfect to help the likes of Ivica Zubac, Larry Nance Jr., and Brandon Ingram — guys who could use a bump or boost in creating shots for themselves early in their career. He’d also come rather cheap after being on his third team in three years.

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The issue is that Ball should be the vocal point of the point guard position. Rondo has rarely been relegated to a backup role, despite the drop in talent. Even though he’s supposed to be an instant starter and successful player, Ball could struggle to adapt to better talents at the point guard position.

If Ball struggles a bit more than expected, the last thing the Lakers need is Rondo vying for a starting role.

Most importantly, Rondo has brought a bit of a malcontent everywhere he’s been. Whether it was Sacramento, Dallas or Chicago, Rondo has been involved in several different issues involving the team. Sacramento wasn’t exactly his fault. Led by then-head coach George Karl and erratic superstar DeMarcus Cousins, each went through their own issues.

However, the Mavericks declined to give Rondo his playoff share in his lone half-season with the team. 

He took it another level last season with an Instagram post ripping Chicago’s veterans Jimmy Butler and Dwyane Wade. It was a part of an up-and-down season for the Bulls, as they constantly teeter from a team that should tank to a playoff team. The Bulls eventually made the playoffs, and even won a handful of playoff games, but lost to the Boston Celtics in six games.

The Lakers don’t have to worry about the playoffs part, but with so many young players on the roster, Los Angeles doesn’t need a veteran with a checkered past. With a second-year coach in Luke Walton, a new front office, and a few players — and fathers — not afraid to speak their minds, the last thing you need is dysfunction in the locker room.

The Los Angeles Lakers are going to play a roster full of young players, in an effort to figure out which players are worth keeping and which players are movable as they enter the very important summer of 2018 free agency where players like Paul George, Russell Westbrook and LeBron James loom.

Next: 2017 NBA free agency tracker - Grades for every deal so far

They’ll have their struggles, but they need a productive season — one that allows them to sell the franchise as one moving in the right direction. Ball is going to be a key piece in those efforts, but there’s still a need for a point guard behind him. Rajon Rondo, or the risk of Rajon Rondo, doesn’t make sense for the Lakers for the 2017-18 season.