Rondo and Celtics Agree to Extension

[Fafnir]

I know we all arent sure if he Rondo can be that kind of guy, but down the line when the big three's contracts are expiring does anybody here think that the possibility of playing with Rondo would draw in free agents, knowing that he is going to get them the ball in good position.  

Kind of like the wide receivers that flock to Tom Brady, such as Moss, Stallworth, Gaffney, Galloway.  

Not really, that's not all that important. Its about winning, getting paid, and being "the man" in the NBA.

Different dynamic that in football where a bad QB destroys a WR's value.

[EJPLAYA]

We payed a couple million per year too much on potential, however it is unlikely that we will overwhelmingly regret this deal like a few contracts we have had in past years. Worse case scenario he doesn't get a jumper and continues to play poke from behind defense. I think the rest of his game is top 5 though.  We'll see if he buckles down each offseason to improve his jumper, and if someone can convince him keeping his feet in front of the other guy results in better defense than the occasional steal. I don't hate this deal. I think their first offer was more in line with what it should have been, but someone would have signed him to more this coming offseason.

[Kuberski33]

Did you really think it was a good deal with Blount?  I mean, I was happy they had resigned him, but I felt they had to overpay a bit to keep him.  It wasn't like he took a discount.

I thought it was a slightly above market rate deal and given the way the guy had played the previous half season plus the lack of quality centers in the league it seemed like a decent investment.  Unfortunately, I think due to the character of the player, it turned out to be a terrible deal.  

Something like this could change the dynamic in the clubhouse -- we don't know.  Because now it's a 'Big 4' with Perk maybe feeling that he's underpaid.  Rondo's history -- not showing up in HS, battles with Tubby Smith, plus last spring -- to me makes this far from a slam dunk move.  I think Danny's rolling the dice here a little bit, but I'd probably have wanted to do the same thing in his position.

[Rondo2287]

I know we all arent sure if he Rondo can be that kind of guy, but down the line when the big three's contracts are expiring does anybody here think that the possibility of playing with Rondo would draw in free agents, knowing that he is going to get them the ball in good position.  

Kind of like the wide receivers that flock to Tom Brady, such as Moss, Stallworth, Gaffney, Galloway.  

Not really, that's not all that important. Its about winning, getting paid, and being "the man" in the NBA.

Different dynamic that in football where a bad QB destroys a WR's value.

Gotcha, I just think about what happened with phoenix players that played with Nash.  I think Marion has clearly dropped off since he left Nash.  Diaw looked very good with Phoenix and we will see if he can keep that up in charlotte, but I would think guys would love to play with Nash to build themselves up for their next deal.  But you are right I dont think the track record is there in the NBA

[Donoghus]

We payed a couple million per year too much on potential, however it is unlikely that we will overwhelmingly regret this deal like a few contracts we have had in past years. Worse case scenario he doesn't get a jumper and continues to play poke from behind defense. I think the rest of his game is top 5 though.  We'll see if he buckles down each offseason to improve his jumper, and if someone can convince him keeping his feet in front of the other guy results in better defense than the occasional steal. I don't hate this deal. I think their first offer was more in line with what it should have been, but someone would have signed him to more this coming offseason.

Yeah, I pretty much agree with this reasoning.  As some others have mentioned, we paid a bit of a premium on Rondo but, IMO, not a ridiculous amount by any means.   He still has room for improvement and he hasn't reached his ceiling, this contract could look a lot better 2 years from now.

Unless he goes out and blows out a knee or something (god forbid), I don't see a lot of regret coming from making this deal a few years from now.  ITs reasonable enough to move a few years from now if there are issues (non-injury related).

[Kuberski33]

I guess what I'm trying to say is don't hammer Danny and Celtics ownership 3 years from now if this thing blows up.  I think the majority feel right now that this is a good deal for the C's and was probably the right move to make given the current market.  But there is risk involved for the Celtics -- and I think a little more than average risk given the history of the player.

[EJPLAYA]

We payed a couple million per year too much on potential, however it is unlikely that we will overwhelmingly regret this deal like a few contracts we have had in past years. Worse case scenario he doesn't get a jumper and continues to play poke from behind defense. I think the rest of his game is top 5 though.  We'll see if he buckles down each offseason to improve his jumper, and if someone can convince him keeping his feet in front of the other guy results in better defense than the occasional steal. I don't hate this deal. I think their first offer was more in line with what it should have been, but someone would have signed him to more this coming offseason.

Yeah, I pretty much agree with this reasoning.  As some others have mentioned, we paid a bit of a premium on Rondo but, IMO, not a ridiculous amount by any means.   He still has room for improvement and he hasn't reached his ceiling, this contract could look a lot better 2 years from now.

Unless he goes out and blows out a knee or something (god forbid), I don't see a lot of regret coming from making this deal a few years from now.  ITs reasonable enough to move a few years from now if there are issues (non-injury related).

TP for finishing my thought. I was going to throw the injury caveat in there. As long as he stays healthy this really helps. I am a bit worried about his durability. Especially those ankles. He tweaked one again last night.

[fairweatherfan]

Great news that we signed Rondo and don't have to hear about this all year and potentially affect his game.

The deal itself seems a little bit high, as others have said, but I feel that Rondo will be well worth it if he continues to develop.  And, I have no doubt somebody would've given him a bigger deal in the offseason, even if only to poison-pill our salary cap going forward.  It's not an ideal contract from the team perspective, but all in all this is win-win.

[Chris]

I guess what I'm trying to say is don't hammer Danny and Celtics ownership 3 years from now if this thing blows up.  I think the majority feel right now that this is a good deal for the C's and was probably the right move to make given the current market.  But there is risk involved for the Celtics -- and I think a little more than average risk given the history of the player.

Hey, I still think they should have waited until next summer, because I genuinely believe they are not yet convinced he is someone they want to build around.  

But I also think the chances of it blowing up in their face are pretty low, since unless he gets injured, he will likely maintain tradability...particularly with the amount of cap space that is being opened up around the league over the next couple of years.

[timepiece33]

All this means is that we will probably take a harder line stance with Ray Allen on a potential extension.  Maybe a 2 year, around $16 MM deal?  He's not going to like it, but it gives him stability while he ages and the downside risk is the MLE. 

[Chris]

All this means is that we will probably take a harder line stance with Ray Allen on a potential extension.  Maybe a 2 year, around $16 MM deal?  He's not going to like it, but it gives him stability while he ages and the downside risk is the MLE. 

I think it will be interesting to see what this does mean for guys like Ray, as well as Perk (who I have already been saying will likely be shopped this summer, unless he is willing to take much less than market value).

It also will be interesting to see how this contract is structured.  Will it be front loaded, in order to maximize cap space in a few years when the Big 3 are coming off the books, or will it be a more traditional contract, with increasing salaries each year.  The more traditional contract would likely save the team significant money, because I would imagine the team will be less likely to be in the luxury tax at the end of the contract, but will definitely be in it for the first few years. 

[Chris]

BTW, as someone who has been a bit critical of the C's signing Rondo right now, I will say one thing...I would much rather pay Rajon Rondo 5 years, $55 million than pay Lamarcus Aldridge 5 years, $65 million

[Kuberski33]

I think it will be interesting to see what this does mean for guys like Ray, as well as Perk (who I have already been saying will likely be shopped this summer, unless he is willing to take much less than market value).
It also will be interesting to see how this contract is structured.  Will it be front loaded, in order to maximize cap space in a few years when the Big 3 are coming off the books, or will it be a more traditional contract, with increasing salaries each year.  The more traditional contract would likely save the team significant money, because I would imagine the team will be less likely to be in the luxury tax at the end of the contract, but will definitely be in it for the first few years. 

I think you need to keep Perk around as long as you don't overpay, though someone may come in and do just that. Ray to me is the most expendable though he's also a guy who may be able to last as long as Reggie Miller did -- and still be effective.

[Bankshot]

All this means is that we will probably take a harder line stance with Ray Allen on a potential extension.  Maybe a 2 year, around $16 MM deal?  He's not going to like it, but it gives him stability while he ages and the downside risk is the MLE. 

I think it will be interesting to see what this does mean for guys like Ray, as well as Perk (who I have already been saying will likely be shopped this summer, unless he is willing to take much less than market value).

It also will be interesting to see how this contract is structured.  Will it be front loaded, in order to maximize cap space in a few years when the Big 3 are coming off the books, or will it be a more traditional contract, with increasing salaries each year.  The more traditional contract would likely save the team significant money, because I would imagine the team will be less likely to be in the luxury tax at the end of the contract, but will definitely be in it for the first few years. 

Perk won't be shopped.  Aside from Dwight Howard, you won't find a better defensive center and the Celtics know it.

[Fafnir]

I know we all arent sure if he Rondo can be that kind of guy, but down the line when the big three's contracts are expiring does anybody here think that the possibility of playing with Rondo would draw in free agents, knowing that he is going to get them the ball in good position.  

Kind of like the wide receivers that flock to Tom Brady, such as Moss, Stallworth, Gaffney, Galloway.  

Not really, that's not all that important. Its about winning, getting paid, and being "the man" in the NBA.

Different dynamic that in football where a bad QB destroys a WR's value.

Gotcha, I just think about what happened with phoenix players that played with Nash.  I think Marion has clearly dropped off since he left Nash.  Diaw looked very good with Phoenix and we will see if he can keep that up in charlotte, but I would think guys would love to play with Nash to build themselves up for their next deal.  But you are right I dont think the track record is there in the NBA

Diaw played much better in Charlotte over the 50+ games he was there last year.

Marion's problem is other coaches keep playing him at the 3, he's not very good when he plays that position. He has to be an undersized 4 to get the best out of his game. Only D'Antoni ever seemed to play him there though.