Rondo's biggest threat as our future point guard...

[ScoobyDoo]

is currently sitting on the bench. His name is Gabe Pruitt.


Here's why:

1. He's 6'4"
2. Cat quick like Rondo
3. Good handle
4. Decent playmaker. In his own way, perhpas better than Rondo
5. Very good shooter from distance and also a good scorer, knows how to get the ball in the basket.
6. Perhps most important...very cerebral player along the lines of DJ. I AM NOT SAYING he is another DJ. What I am saying is that you can literally hear the cogs grinding away whn he's playing. He is constantly thinking the game.

If Gabe pruitt's improvement on Defense is larger than Rondo's on offense...Pruitt could well unseat Rondo.

Personally I'm a huge Rondo fan. I'm very excited about a future point guard rotation of Rondo and Pruitt.

However, from a pure basketball standpoint,  the dimension that Pruitt's shooting ability could add to this team from the elbows, the top of the key and the three line, would make this team deadly.

I expect and hope to see alot of Pruitt next year. I'd like to see a Rondo, Pruitt, House rotation at the point.


But keep your eye on Pruitt.

[BballTim]

  Pruitt played 97 minutes of garbage time for us. I don't see how you can make any kind of comparison between them based on that.

[Mr October]

ahhh, I like Pruitt. But i don't think he has starter potential. He's a combo guard. Too small to be a shooting guard, and then lacking the point guard instincts, vision. But he could really be a heck of a 1/2 off the bench in a couple years. We'll see.

I think Rondo's greatest threat will be the age of the 3 stars. As they age, the offense will continue to slow in the half court. Rondo needs an uptempo environment. It'll be interesting to see if a balance evolves.

[Roy Hobbs]

I think Pruitt is more of a combo guard than a starting point guard.  Look at his D-League numbers: 3.9 assists vs. 3.17 turnovers per game.  He wasn't a big assists guy in college, either.

I think Rondo's instincts, court vision, and passing ability give him the clear edge over Pruitt in terms of playing point.

[Donoghus]

Are these observations based on what he did in college/NBDL because it would virtually be impossible to gauge what impact he'll make in the NBA as witnessed by his scant non-garbage minutes this past season?

[clover]

Perhaps the need for some speed for Rondo could be the excuse given for trading one of the Three (hint: Ray Ray) within the next 13 months.

[Mon]

The biggest threat to Rondo is indeed another point guard...Doc Rivers.

[ScoobyDoo]

To be honest, it's just a gut feeling from what I've seen of him in play this season. His demeanor on the court and the way he moves around and gets things done.

He has a long way to go but I think he's got a chance to "suprise" us with his ability at the point.

I love the comment about Rivers being the bigest threat to Rondo. Classic.

I didn't realise he had that many turnovers vs assists.

I agree he could become a good combo guard for us along the lines of DWest. But I also think he has better ball handling and passing ability than West and an outside shot at pressing Rondo, especially if Rondo's shot doesn't "continue" to improve as it has been.

If he can become a good facilitator and a good defender...that combined with his shooting ability could make it interesting.   

[BballTim]

To be honest, it's just a gut feeling from what I've seen of him in play this season. His demeanor on the court and the way he moves around and gets things done.

He has a long way to go but I think he's got a chance to "suprise" us with his ability at the point.

I love the comment about Rivers being the bigest threat to Rondo. Classic.

I didn't realise he had that many turnovers vs assists.

I agree he could become a good combo guard for us along the lines of DWest. But I also think he has better ball handling and passing ability than West and an outside shot at pressing Rondo, especially if Rondo's shot doesn't "continue" to improve as it has been.

If he can become a good facilitator and a good defender...that combined with his shooting ability could make it interesting.   

  To be honest, I didn't see anything this season that made me think that Pruitt was as quick as Rajon.

[libermaniac]

Pruitt stinks.  Good rookies are good right away, especially those who went to college.  Given that Pruitt couldn't get any playing time in the NBA, you can bank on the fact that he will NEVER be a solid contributor in the NBA.  Look at Rodney Stuckey ... he made an impact in his rookie year.  If you are good you do that.  Remember Pierce, Joe Johnson?  Those guys showed serious talent from day 1.  I'll put Pruitt in the camp with Kedrick Brown and Joe Forte - guys who I kept reading on message boards had talent but NEVER saw any.

I'd love to be wrong.  But, pretty sure I'm not.

[the_Bird]

Is it just an unavoidable force of habit to have unrealistically high expectations for our young players?  I mean, what on earth has Pruit shown - either in the D-League or in garbage time - to make it a lock that he'll even be on the roster?  He's a second round pick that didn't do enough to win any minutes from Eddie House.  He might well prove to be a good player in time, but lots more 2nd rounders wash out of the league that stick and he's given no evidence to suggest he'll do the latter.

[Cman]

The biggest threat to Rondo is indeed another point guard...Doc Rivers.

HA!  That was good for a chuckle, thanks. 

[Barnabas]

is an injury.  Look, we won't be drafting any stellar point guards, or any stellar player, for the next couple of years.  And, unless we trade one of the big three, guys like Steve Nash won't be suiting up in green.  So it's fair to say that Rondo's job is safe.  Safer than most of ours, in this crazy economy!

Sure, we would prefer a 3-point shooter and a stellar playmaker.  But guess what?  The team that has that is probably saying, "gosh, wouldn't it be nice to have someone who can play terrific defense!".  You can't have it all.  You have to make do with what you have, and make adjustments that will allow them to contribute, but also set up a system that compensates for their shortcomings.  That job belongs to the coaching staff.

[Bahku]

I don't see Pruitt as being a threat to Rondo at all, or as having all the skills and intangibles that Rage does. I also see him moving over to SG more than point, and would love to see the two of them playing side-by-side in the future.