Travel back to 2012. Rajon Rondo had ripped off 24 consecutive games with double-digit assists, falling just five games short of John Stockton’s NBA record.
In the weeks that followed, Rondo posted four postseason triple-doubles, a 44-point clinic against the Miami Heat and a not-so-sudden emergence as one of the best players in the league. This resulted in the relatively common belief that Rondo had emerged as one of the Top 10 players in the league.
In the two seasons since, Rondo has been unable to stay on the court. He tore his ACL in 2013-14 while leading the league in assists for the second consecutive season. He faced an up-hill battle of recovery throughout 2013-14.
It won’t get any easier in 2014-15.
According to Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe, Rondo suffered a broken hand and underwent surgery to repair it.
Sources tell the Globe that Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo suffered a broken hand and had surgery today. Return timetable is unclear.
— Baxter Holmes (@BaxterHolmes) September 26, 2014
Boston confirmed the report via its official NBA.com website:
The Boston Celtics announced today that guard Rajon Rondo underwent successful surgical fixation of a left metacarpal fracture this morning at New England Baptist Hospital. The injury was a result of a fall at his home last night. The surgery was performed by Dr. Hervey Kimball and Celtics Team Physician Dr. Brian McKeon. Estimated timetable for return is six to eight weeks.
With the six-to-eight week timetable, Rondo could miss roughly a month of the 2014-15 regular season.
The injuries that Rondo has incurred have been ill-timed, to say the least. He’s supposed to be the face of the NBA’s most accomplished franchise, but instead, he’s nursing injuries while Boston builds a young roster that isn’t good enough to win right now.
The hand surgery adds fuel to the fire that is persistent trade rumors; rumors which president of basketball operations Danny Ainge continually addresses with the same exact response.
Ainge on if he’d trade Rondo: “The truthful answer is I really don’t know.I have no intention. I’m not trying to trade Rondo.”
— Bill Doyle (@BillDoyle15) September 22, 2014
Ainge continued:
Ainge also said about Rondo:: The possibility of a trade is not out of the question. Nobody is untradeable, but I don’t see that happening.
— Bill Doyle (@BillDoyle15) September 22, 2014
Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston reported on September 23 that both Ainge and owner Wyc Grousbeck made one thing clear: Boston wants to keep Rondo for the long-term.
“It’s my goal to keep Rondo here,” Grousbeck said. “I think we all want that. And I actually honestly think — he should speak for himself — I think Rajon wants to stay, or would be very happy to stay. And we’ll see how this season goes, and how the negotiations go, but he’s proud to be a Celtic. I know that. He’s proud to wear that [2008 title] ring and he deserved it.”
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge was downright exasperated when asked yet again about Rondo’s future in Boston.
“Are you seriously asking me that again? Yes, we expect Rajon to be in Boston for the long term,” Ainge said. “Does that need to be asked any more by anybody ever again?”
Being hurt doesn’t help Rondo’s cause, but it doesn’t eliminate the desire to keep him, either.
With both Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce dealt elsewhere, Rondo was forced to hit the rest button with the organization. Avery Bradley, Jeff Green, Kelly Olynyk and Jared Sullinger are solid players with promise, but none qualify as stars.
Raw ability aside, the biggest hurdle for Rondo is the lack of an offseason—again.
Rondo will miss training camp and the entire preseason. As the primary ball-handler and facilitator, that hinders Rondo’s ability to develop an on-court chemistry with his teammates.
There’s always the potential for Rondo to return to elite form. He was a top-tier assist-man in limited action in 2013-14, but training camp and the preseason are invaluable.
To make matters worse, the Celtics drafted point guard Marcus Smart at No. 6 overall in the 2014 NBA Draft. It’s been said that Smart isn’t a replacement to Rondo, but that was before the former took over as one of Boston’s featured training camp and preseason guards.
As if a season of uncertainty weren’t enough, Rondo is now facing a massively uphill battle.
Charlotte Hornets Put Jeffery Taylor on Leave of Absence
In the world of sports, the hottest topic of the month of September has been domestic violence. The NFL has been hit with a flurry of cases for some of its biggest names.
Three-time Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice, 2013 Pro Bowl defensive end Greg Hardy and 2012 NFL MVP Adrian Peterson were all arrested for some form of domestic violence. The handling of each case by their respective organizations received serious backlash, as did the response by the league itself.
The NBA was hit with the same unfortunate twist of fate when Charlotte Hornets forward Jeffery Taylor was arrested for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend and a hotel employee at a Marriott in East Lansing, Michigan. The team wasted little time in responding to the issue.
According to Adi Joseph of USA TODAY Sports, the Hornets have placed Taylor on an indefinite leave of absence as the NBA further investigates the issue.
The Hornets announced the decision Friday evening, and the NBA confirmed its support of the separation. Hornets spokesman Mike Cristaldi said Taylor will be paid during the leave, which was not described as a suspension by the Hornets or the NBA. He is set to make about $915,000 this season.
“We have informed Jeffery Taylor that effective immediately he will not be participating in any team-related activities while the NBA is investigating his conduct in this matter,” the team said in a news release. “As an organization, we understand and appreciate the seriousness of this matter, and will assist the NBA and law enforcement in any way we can until this comes to an acceptable resolution. We have spoken with Jeffery and his representatives and they fully understand our position.”
Charlotte learned its lesson from the Baltimore Ravens, Carolina Panthers and Minnesota Vikings’ respective mishandling of domestic violence cases. Either that or it believes in having players who take appropriate moral and legal actions.
Here’s hoping for the latter.
The NBA has yet to act on its own, but its support of the Hornets’ decision is a step in the right direction. Adam Silver is under mountains of pressure after the NFL community hounded Roger Goodell for allegedly letting them down.
Taylor was also arrested for the malicious destruction of a building.
Around The League
- In a blast from the past, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports that Jason Kapono agreed to a training camp deal with the Golden State Warriors. Kapono hasn’t played in the NBA since 2012, but the 6’8″ swingman is a career 43.4 percent shooter from beyond the arc in 509 games played. That creates the existing interest from an organization that values the 3-ball as much as any. Kapono led the league in 3-point field goal percentage in 2006-07 and 2007-08.
- Per Marc Stein of ESPN, the San Antonio Spurs re-signed breakout FIBA World Cup performer Aron Baynes to a one-year deal worth $2.1 million. Baynes, 27, is a 6’10” big man who saw limited play in 2013-14. He averaged 16.8 points and 7.0 rebounds in five games at the 2014 World Cup.
Rondo should just prove that he’s a real MAN, and sign a large extension with the Celtics. He already has a ring to his name, and trying to “latch on” with a contender in free agency doesn’t always work out.
He was given the reigns to be the Leader of the rebuilding Celtics, but he has yet to prove he’s a leader.