Frankly, I am giddy with excitement over this development, as Rondo's contract situation was my biggest concern heading into this season. Had Boston not compromised, Rondo would have been a restricted free agent after this season, increasing the chances that he'd be playing elsewhere next year. Fortunately for Boston, that didn't happen and it now seems that Rajon Rondo will be feeding his teammates in green and white for many years to come.
Some question the Celtics' commitment to a mercurial player who can't shoot at all, but that perspective is flawed and tends to marginalize a lot of Rondo's contributions to the Celtics. To the naysayers, I ask only this: why does Rondo need to shoot jumpers to be valuable to the Celtics? Rajon Rondo is on the floor to create jump shots for other players, not to knock down his own. And Rajon Rondo is quickly becoming one of the best in the business at creating shots for his teammates without the ability to reliably knock down his own shot, so why shouldn't he be paid well for doing his job well (this isn't communist Russia, you know...)?
Simply put Rajon Rondo is the perfect point guard for today's NBA and for the Boston Celtics. He is incredibly long for such a tiny person and is among the quickest guards in the Association, adding intense speed to a Celtics team that would be slower than molasses without him. Much like the way Tony Parker is the San Antonio Spurs' fast-break, Rajon Rondo is unstoppable in the open court and has the ability to change gears and control the tempo of the basketball game, a trait that is innate rather than acquired and very rare to boot. Elite point guards like Rajon Rondo, Tony Parker and Chris Paul don't just play with the pedal to the metal all the time, instead opting to change speed at just the right moment to change the whole complexion of a game.
Rajon Rondo's length and athleticism also help him on the defensive end, where he has always been committed to pestering his opponents into submission. Long arms and quick feet make Rondo difficult to get around, and nearly every elite guard in this league has been shut down by Rajon at least once in the past two years. In the past he gambled too much for steals and lacked the requisite muscle to deal with bigger point guards (Deron Williams and Chauncey Billups in particular), but this season Rondo has added some bulk and is more committed to playing a disciplined brand of team defense that has really shown improvement through the team's first four games. Rondo's nasty streak is longer than his wingspan and his new attitude has him prepared to play stifling D every night this season (spotty play was my only knock against him in the past, no more!).
Rondo's natural gifts and the hand-checking rules of today's NBA make him the perfect point guard for professional basketball, but it's his ability to find shooters on the perimeter that makes him so valuable (at least $55 million valuable) to the Boston Celtics. Since the championship season, Rondo has displayed a knack for finding Ray Allen in transition, but he's also improved his ability to find jump shooters in the half court offense as well. Because of his speed and the rules regarding hand checking in the NBA, it is impossible to keep Rondo out of the paint which can do several things to opponents. Rondo has great touch and a superb ability to finish tricky lay-ups in traffic in the paint, so if the defense does nothing he can shred an opponent all night long with high percentage looks for himself. The only answer is to help and collapse the defense on the little guy which then leaves a bevy of Boston shooters (Ray Allen, Rasheed Wallace, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett) wide open for equally high percentage shots. There is simply no winning play for the defense, especially this year with the addition of Rasheed Wallace.
As a result, the Celtics are shooting 44% from downtown this year (5th best in the league) and 50% from the field overall. Simply put, Rondo creates quality looks for all of his teammates and he's now finding them with better passes and fewer mistakes overall. In fact, right now Rajon Rondo is second in the NBA only to Steve Nash in assists per game at 11.8, and his assist to turnover ratio is miles beyond anyone else in the top ten at a staggering 5.22:1 (Chauncey Billups is sitting at 4.00 right now, but he is averaging less than 7 assists per game). Rondo has elite numbers and plays at an elite level, so why wouldn't he be worth that kind of money? Can you name me a better point guard in the Eastern Conference right now?
(I'll wait)
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Some of you probably want to say that Derrick Rose or Jameer Nelson may be better, but that just isn't the case. Both of those guys are very, very good, but Rondo has dominated them both before and will continue to do so. He is the best point guard in the Eastern Conference right now and is truthfully among the top three in the entirety of the Association, behind Chris Paul and Tony Parker/Deron Williams. And wouldn't you know it, with this new extension he'll be paid slightly less than those guys but more than just about every other point guard out there. It doesn't seem to me to be a reach at all, I think Rondo has earned every penny of his new deal and has the ability to eclipse every guard in the NBA except for Chris Paul.
Rajon Rondo is a champion point guard who has proven that he can distribute the basketball to a triumvirate of All-Star players and create order from chaos at lightning speed. He's also got a mean streak that we haven't seen in the NBA and he has absolutely no fear of anyone in this league. Why wouldn't you want to sign him? His inability to shoot makes him who he is, and if you changed his ability to shoot you'd change how he plays the game. The only area where I really want his touch to improve is from the free-throw line, beyond that I say let him off the leash so he can run amok just how he is and sit back and enjoy the ride (get ready for a long haul, because this ride doesn't stop until June).
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