This is why I can't stand Rajon Rondo

[KungPoweChicken]

Too much was made of Rondo coming to the games "late". Rondo's routine is not Ray Allen's routine.

[CoachBo]

. . . Rondo's been made out to be the Celtic who has the most inconsistent play, the worst work ethic, and the biggest attitude problem.

Among the starters, all of those things might be true.  He absolutely *is* inconsistent, and his attitude has rubbed some guys the wrong way.  I'm not sure about his work ethic, but there are at least some questions raised by him coming to the arena just before tip-off at least twice during the playoffs.

Those things don't mean we should trade him for a sack full of rocks, though.  However, the kid has a ways to go before he's a superstar, and he's certainly not above criticism.

Here's a good article that shows some of the ups and downs of Rondo: Link.

The obvious thing to do is keep Rondo and hope the rough spots get ironed out. Despite what you read here, he's not a finished product. Not even close. Chances are, they will. And the obvious thing to do is keep Ray Allen and ride that shooting touch next year with a deeper bench.

Doesn't mean you fling up your hands and weep if Ainge finds a way to improve the ballclub by dealing them. It's just not likely.

[BballTim]

. . . Rondo's been made out to be the Celtic who has the most inconsistent play, the worst work ethic, and the biggest attitude problem.

Among the starters, all of those things might be true.  He absolutely *is* inconsistent, and his attitude has rubbed some guys the wrong way.  I'm not sure about his work ethic, but there are at least some questions raised by him coming to the arena just before tip-off at least twice during the playoffs.

  Perk was the only starter that was really more consistent than Rondo in the playoffs.

[Roy Hobbs]

. . . Rondo's been made out to be the Celtic who has the most inconsistent play, the worst work ethic, and the biggest attitude problem.

Among the starters, all of those things might be true.  He absolutely *is* inconsistent, and his attitude has rubbed some guys the wrong way.  I'm not sure about his work ethic, but there are at least some questions raised by him coming to the arena just before tip-off at least twice during the playoffs.

  Perk was the only starter that was really more consistent than Rondo in the playoffs.

Maybe.  However, Rondo is still the only one of the starters who has his *effort* questioned:

If only, Ainge and Rivers lament, the kid would demonstrate that focus through 82 games.

"The single biggest thing with him," said Ainge, "is getting him to compete night in and night out."

I called him over and I said, 'Rondo, you're not playing with speed.' And I thought after that his speed became a factor. It's tough to make a floater when you're walking.

I think that consistency of effort will come as Rondo matures.  However, I find it amusing the number of Celtics fans who try to cover the kid's flaws.  He's learning; he's not there yet. 

It's okay to just admit that he's pretty inconsistent, and needs to get better in some areas (keeping his man in front of him, hitting the jumper consistently, pushing the ball every time in transition, knowing when to look for his own offense versus passing, etc.)

He's still in the top-tier of point guards.  However, he's not the untouchable, top-3 guy you'd think he was reading this blog.  (And for the record, I think the OP is overly harsh, and perhaps unrealistic, in his assessment.)

[CoachBo]

. . . Rondo's been made out to be the Celtic who has the most inconsistent play, the worst work ethic, and the biggest attitude problem.

Among the starters, all of those things might be true.  He absolutely *is* inconsistent, and his attitude has rubbed some guys the wrong way.  I'm not sure about his work ethic, but there are at least some questions raised by him coming to the arena just before tip-off at least twice during the playoffs.

  Perk was the only starter that was really more consistent than Rondo in the playoffs.

Maybe.  However, Rondo is still the only one of the starters who has his *effort* questioned:

If only, Ainge and Rivers lament, the kid would demonstrate that focus through 82 games.

"The single biggest thing with him," said Ainge, "is getting him to compete night in and night out."

I called him over and I said, 'Rondo, you're not playing with speed.' And I thought after that his speed became a factor. It's tough to make a floater when you're walking.

I think that consistency of effort while come as Rondo matures.  However, I find it amusing the number of Celtics fans who try to cover the kid's flaws.  He's learning; he's not there yet.

Co-sign all the way. I suspect personal immaturity is behind all of the flaws in Rondo's game.

There is, in fact, a LOT more to a point guard's game than a triple-double. As Casey Stengel once said about Hector "What A Pair of Hands" Lopez: "What good does it do me if he drives in three runs a game. He lets in four with his glove."

[BballTim]

. . . Rondo's been made out to be the Celtic who has the most inconsistent play, the worst work ethic, and the biggest attitude problem.

Among the starters, all of those things might be true.  He absolutely *is* inconsistent, and his attitude has rubbed some guys the wrong way.  I'm not sure about his work ethic, but there are at least some questions raised by him coming to the arena just before tip-off at least twice during the playoffs.

  Perk was the only starter that was really more consistent than Rondo in the playoffs.

Maybe.  However, Rondo is still the only one of the starters who has his *effort* questioned:

If only, Ainge and Rivers lament, the kid would demonstrate that focus through 82 games.

"The single biggest thing with him," said Ainge, "is getting him to compete night in and night out."

I called him over and I said, 'Rondo, you're not playing with speed.' And I thought after that his speed became a factor. It's tough to make a floater when you're walking.

I think that consistency of effort will come as Rondo matures.  However, I find it amusing the number of Celtics fans who try to cover the kid's flaws.  He's learning; he's not there yet. 

It's okay to just admit that he's pretty inconsistent, and needs to get better in some areas (keeping his man in front of him, hitting the jumper consistently, pushing the ball every time in transition, knowing when to look for his own offense versus passing, etc.)

He's still in the top-tier of point guards.  However, he's not the untouchable, top-3 guy you'd think he was reading this blog.  (And for the record, I think the OP is overly harsh, and perhaps unrealistic, in his assessment.)

  I heard Doc say on more than one occasion that he wasn't talking about a lack of effort when he made the "Rondo, you're not playing with speed" comment. And sure it's ok to admit that he can be inconsistent. He's said so himself. But it's also ok to keep it in perspective. He's not wildly inconsistent like many claim. He had some bad games against Orlando. Ray didn't exactly shine. Paul disappeared for long stretches. Sometimes Rondo didn't push the ball when he should have. Sometimes he did push the ball and nobody else ran up the court. When nobody covered Rondo it made things harder for Pierce. When Paul and Ray were passive on offense it put more pressure on Rondo.

  I'm not saying that Rondo's flawless. I'm not saying that he doesn't have plenty of room to improve. I'm just saying that people need to take him out from under the microscope when they evaluate him. Everyone mentions that he has holes in his game. What pg doesn't? What player doesn't? There was a link in one of the "Ray and Rondo for Amare" threads to a suns board where many of them were chomping at the bit to trade Amare for a player like Rondo. Why would they have so much higher opinion of Rondo than most people here? Because they don't watch and criticize every play he makes in every game. But on the flip side most posters here don't see every flaw of opposing players.

[Rondo_is_better]

Um...I can stand Rondo. Somehow I can just barely put up with his exponential growth as a player over 3 seasons, improving jump shot, lightning quick speed, incredible vision and athletic ability. His huge hands and superb ball-handling also allow me tolerate him. But just barely.   

[vagrantwade]

I used to be one of his biggest fans. But I was very discouraged with his output in the Magic series. People say he's already an elite PG, and that he deserves a pass because he's got a title under his belt. Well let me say something. He is too inconsistent and passive. In fact he's passive most of the time. Defenses know how to react to his shot AND penetration, but they give him free shots anyway because they know if they sag off him he'll miss most of the time. So they're guaranteed to get the defensive board.

And what is this nonsense about him being a 2nd team all defensive player? He stank on defense against the likes of Rafer Alston and Anthony Johnson. He's also very poor at defending the pick and roll, though he did get better, only to get worse again.

If that's not all bad enough, he comes only 30 minutes before games, he fights with teammates (just ask Paul Pierce... he said he's come close to duking it out with him on a few occassions because he's so hard headed... said it in an EEI interview), and he makes poor decisions when he calls the shots. Remember that Christmas game in LA when Rondo took an ill advised three and Ray Allen yelled at him saying he was open. They did this on national TV! How embarrassing! And Rondo also recently got into a yelling match with Doc in a practice (maybe 2-3 months ago) because Doc was criticizing his passes and decision making skills. This happened in practice of course, but it was televised.

I hope we get a good big man and some defensive players for Rondo. You know, guys who actually PLAY defense.

You posted this same nonsense on the ESPN forum.

Rondo > You TPD.

[snively]

I would guess that Rondo's work ethic issues are related to his stubbornness and pride.  Deep down, he thinks he's really good, and that he's really not doing much wrong on the court.  Thankfully, he has shown the capability of being humbled.  It's just been a slow process that has probably driven his teammates crazy.  The cocky kid comes in thinking he knows how to win, is partially right, but refuses to acknowledge even the possibility of wrong, until it's glaringly obvious.

But it's not as if he's a really lazy guy.  He's an active and physical rebounder as I've ever seen and a competitor.  He just needs to be fully convinced that he has a glaring flaw that needs to be overcome in order to work on it.

I'm a pretty big fan of Rondo's game, so I'm pretty biased in his favor, but I do think he knows a lot about winning basketball and his team's conflicts with him are less about him being wrong than about his willingness to be a teamplayer.  I think as he becomes more socially mature with age, the conflicts will subside and he'll be able to take on an effective leadership role.  He's blessed to have a pretty solid group of leaders around him with the clout to help knock of some of his rough edges.

[DeStefano2004]

Ive always thought Rondo was a bit of a pompous fella...

[CoachBo]

Good points as always, Roy. The truth, as it usually is, is somewhere in the midst of all this. But you can't beat the entertainment of people who wouldn't trade Rondo for Deron Williams. This blog is always a lot of fun in the summer.

It seems relatively obvious that Celtics management has his game, and his flaws, in perspective. I don't expect them to trade him, and I'm not saying they should - unless George Shinn's desperate enough to move Chris Paul.

Hopefully, though, they're talking to him about becoming something besides a perimeter liability, playing smarter on the defensive end, playing aggressively all the time with the basketball, not looking like Shaq Lite at the foul line, etc. He can get better and he probably will.

[Roy Hobbs]

I would guess that Rondo's work ethic issues are related to his stubbornness and pride.  Deep down, he thinks he's really good, and that he's really not doing much wrong on the court.  Thankfully, he has shown the capability of being humbled.

The stubbornness, to me, has the potential to be a major problem.  I remember reading this quote and cringing:

Rondo is often compared with Tony Parker, another late-first-round pick, who guided the San Antonio Spurs to the 2003 championship even though he lacked a reliable jumper. Whereas Parker overhauled his technique and has developed into a long-range marksman, Rondo intends to change nothing.

"I'm set in my ways," says Rondo, who believes his accuracy will improve with practice. "I don't feel like I have to settle for a jump shot, because I can get to the basket at will."

If there's a better way -- which will help Rondo's game, and in turn the team -- I'd rather he explore it, rather than reject it out of hand.  Rondo is absolutely wrong that he doesn't need a jump shot to be successful, or at least to maximize his success.

Now, he's apparently been practicing his jump shot this off-season  We'll see how he does next season.  If he's knocking down jumpers at a consistent rate, beautiful.  If he's still struggling because he was mule-headed and refused to change, then I think that will continue to hold him back.

[guava_wrench]

I really am shocked that there are any questions about Rondo's work ethic. Sure he is stubborn and is probably not a nice guy to hang with. But work ethic? Where did this critique come from? He has a reputation of having a great work ethic.

[Scalablob990]

He'll progress as the years go on, but he's never going to attain Paul Pierce status with the Celtics. Way too many flaws in his game to ever make it 100% smooth and consistent. His offense is really killing us though, and i'm hoping he comes into 09'-10' with a much better shot.

[MrTripleDouble10]

He'll progress as the years go on, but he's never going to attain Paul Pierce status with the Celtics. Way too many flaws in his game to ever make it 100% smooth and consistent. His offense is really killing us though, and i'm hoping he comes into 09'-10' with a much better shot.

I assume you mean his jumpshot is "killing" the team, not his offense.  I'm going to go out on a limb here and say his offense (which includes running the team) was a huge reason why they beat the Bulls in round 1.

Personally I think his jumpshot has gotten slightly better from year to year.  The one aspect of his game that concerns me most is his FT shooting.  Totally unacceptable for an elite PG running a championship-level team to shoot as poorly as he does from the line.  Especially since he drives to the basket so much and gets fouled so much.