Article on Brad Stevens (The problems facing a rookie coach in the NBA)

[Amonkey]

Sounds like thr most pessimistic person just spilling out the worst case scenario. I agree therell be a lot of adjustments that hell have to make, but it doesnt mean that all those things are gonna happen. Thats why they play the game and thats why this writer writes this weak article in July rather than December when there are more substance to those supposedly scenarios.

I mean he hams up the Rondo/team mate friction stuff but I don't see what's overly anti-Celtic about it. He's just stating the obvious.
*new players
*new coach
*new system of basketball for that coach who's used to the college system- it will take a significant amount of time for him to adjust. Doesn't matter who you are it will be hard to move from college to the NBA.
*star player has attitude history. I think it's perfectly reasonable to at least question Rondo's attitude once the losses start adding up.
*He's coaching against the best players and best coaches in the world. It's going to take him some serious time to adjust- odds are that he'll be an amazing coach in the NBA after a few years.
*Author is just saying that these are the challenges facing a rookie coach. Is he wrong about the referees? The grueling season, or trying to become the trusted leader of an NBA player group WHILST learning without deferring  to his assistants too much in this period of transition?

Personally I'm excited to see Rondo man up and lead the team through a tough season or two. He has an image around the NBA as a bit of a punk who's only good with Hall of Famers around him which I think is bogus.

If he does prove himself then I want him re-signed for a near max or max contract in 2015. If not, then he can go to New York with Lebron and Melo. (Latest rumor is that Melo will pick his own players in 2015).

Major over reaction here IMO.
If you think it's not going to be tough for Stevens have a think about Calipari.

I dont think its anti celtic at all. I just think its just a weak article. If he was talking about the potential challenges Steven will be facing and listing them like he did then itd be a good article. However, to states all those things as if it is what will happen when there hasnt been a single game played makes it a single game. Its very easy to list all the worst possible scenario in July when theres nothing to back it up.

Again though, if he simply articulated that Steven will face many challenges such as a, b, c and etc would make it to a more insightful article but the delivery is weak.

[garz]

It's beyond ridiculous now, I take it the media are just trying to get back at him for not being nice enough to them. Media have no code or integrity you can't trust anything they say.

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

Exactly. Like I'm sure that's why KG and Pierce discussed in a heart filled interview that they're really going to miss Rondo and made a friend for life. And that's guys like KG talking...

The guy didn't get along with Ray and butted heads with Doc on occasion and all of a sudden he's "extremely unpopular" in the entire locker room. Nah, he's just unpopular among the media since he won't talk to them in detail...

Right, I'm not saying that he can't be difficult (most extremely competitive athletes are) but it's becoming outrageous the amount of "Rondo attitude" articles are being written and most from people that haven't even spoken to him.

[chambers]

It's beyond ridiculous now, I take it the media are just trying to get back at him for not being nice enough to them. Media have no code or integrity you can't trust anything they say.

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

Exactly. Like I'm sure that's why KG and Pierce discussed in a heart filled interview that they're really going to miss Rondo and made a friend for life. And that's guys like KG talking...

The guy didn't get along with Ray and butted heads with Doc on occasion and all of a sudden he's "extremely unpopular" in the entire locker room. Nah, he's just unpopular among the media since he won't talk to them in detail...

Right, I'm not saying that he can't be difficult (most extremely competitive athletes are) but it's becoming outrageous the amount of "Rondo attitude" articles are being written and most from people that haven't even spoken to him.

Well I don't think his history has been perfect. You don't have to have met an NBA player to judge whether or not there have been probable attitude issues in the past.
I think it's fair to say that Rondo is cocky, extremely self confident and competitive.
I think as far as his history goes we've got Ray Allen saying their beef started because Ray and Rondo were going to be traded for stoudemire and barbosa, and when Ray explained to Rondo that this was because Doc and Danny were upset with Rondos attitude it became personal between Rondo and Ray.
We have reports of Rondo throwing bottles at the screen during practice tape review and more than one verbal altercation with Doc.
We have Rondo head butting an NBA ref in a desperately important playoff game against Atlanta after being warned for doing something similar. This screams of a passion for the game but it also screams a lack of team awareness and somewhat selfishness to do that to your team in the playoffs.
I love the kid but you can't call him an angel. His public record is not squeaky clean.
His former teammate detailing how his coach and general manager wanted to trade them is evidence of friction in the locker room and organization.

All these stories are reported to the public and they might get blown out of proportion but casual NBA fans only get those stories. As celtics fans we see the good and bad but the good far outweighs the bad which also taints our viewpoint/perspective on the matter. Just as Celtics fans generally put their trade value expectations of Rondo as extremely high, yet he often doesn't even make the list of top 5 or 7 point guards in the NBA. Half of this board were outraged when Detroit fans felt Rondo was no where near enough for Drummond. Yet the rest of the NBA fan base felt the same way as detroits fans.

Look at everything from both sides.

[Mazingerz]

Are there any College coaches who made the incredible leap of faith to the NBA and succeeded?

[LooseCannon]

Are there any College coaches who made the incredible leap of faith to the NBA and succeeded?

Dick Motta?  Bill Fitch?  Cotton Fitzsimmons?  (Lou Carnasecca in the ABA?)  I realize those are a bunch of old names.  The most successful jump in recent years is probably PJ Carlesimo.

[aporel#18]

I really only use hoopshype because they aggregate rumors and tweets.

The author of this particular article is 70-something-year-old Charley Rosen, who may be best known for co-writing More Than a Game with Phil Jackson (with whom he was an assistant coach for the Albany Patroons).  He wrote The Pivotal Season, about the 71-72 Lakers, and Bullpen Diaries, about the Yankees, so obviously he must hate Boston sports.

TP. Reading this article I thought he was very pessimistic about the Cs chances. Of course he has a point, and I agree that Stevens will need an adjustment period, but I think he can do it on-the-fly. Then I looked for his last article before this, and it's about the worst and best offseason moves. He starts by predicting KG/PP to Brooklyn as one of the worst because of KG's "odometer" (I hate to generate traffic for him, but I think the link is relevant): http://hoopshype.com/columns/rosen/the-best-and-worst-moves-this-offseason

I don't know if he's a Boston sports hater or if he's just trying to get some buzz, but he doesn't seem to appreciate our Celtics a lot.

[BballTim]

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

I'd really like some reporter to interview Rondo and ask him what he knows about analytics and how he feels about the use of advanced statistics.  That would probably give us a clue as to whether or not Stevens can forge a solid relationship with Rondo.

  You think Stevens can only get along with players who like advanced stats?

[sed522002]

It's beyond ridiculous now, I take it the media are just trying to get back at him for not being nice enough to them. Media have no code or integrity you can't trust anything they say.

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

Exactly. Like I'm sure that's why KG and Pierce discussed in a heart filled interview that they're really going to miss Rondo and made a friend for life. And that's guys like KG talking...

The guy didn't get along with Ray and butted heads with Doc on occasion and all of a sudden he's "extremely unpopular" in the entire locker room. Nah, he's just unpopular among the media since he won't talk to them in detail...

Right, I'm not saying that he can't be difficult (most extremely competitive athletes are) but it's becoming outrageous the amount of "Rondo attitude" articles are being written and most from people that haven't even spoken to him.

Well I don't think his history has been perfect. You don't have to have met an NBA player to judge whether or not there have been probable attitude issues in the past.
I think it's fair to say that Rondo is cocky, extremely self confident and competitive.
I think as far as his history goes we've got Ray Allen saying their beef started because Ray and Rondo were going to be traded for stoudemire and barbosa, and when Ray explained to Rondo that this was because Doc and Danny were upset with Rondos attitude it became personal between Rondo and Ray.
We have reports of Rondo throwing bottles at the screen during practice tape review and more than one verbal altercation with Doc.
We have Rondo head butting an NBA ref in a desperately important playoff game against Atlanta after being warned for doing something similar. This screams of a passion for the game but it also screams a lack of team awareness and somewhat selfishness to do that to your team in the playoffs.
I love the kid but you can't call him an angel. His public record is not squeaky clean.
His former teammate detailing how his coach and general manager wanted to trade them is evidence of friction in the locker room and organization.

All these stories are reported to the public and they might get blown out of proportion but casual NBA fans only get those stories. As celtics fans we see the good and bad but the good far outweighs the bad which also taints our viewpoint/perspective on the matter. Just as Celtics fans generally put their trade value expectations of Rondo as extremely high, yet he often doesn't even make the list of top 5 or 7 point guards in the NBA. Half of this board were outraged when Detroit fans felt Rondo was no where near enough for Drummond. Yet the rest of the NBA fan base felt the same way as detroits fans.

Look at everything from both sides.

I don't think Rondo is perfect, never had, but instead of him making definite statements as if he knows, he can use words along the lines of "reportedly" or something like that. Especially when he's implying Doc left because of him like it's fact.

Besides, I think he already has his opinion of Rondo set given by what he said about him in his article about the most "Overrated Players in NBA"

Rajon Rondo’s ornery, petulant attitude is beginning to have more of a negative effect on the old-and-in-the-way Celtics than his effectiveness on the court.

Kevin Garnett is, and always has been, a choker. Expect him to tally beaucoup points in blow-outs, to be a cheap-shot artist, and for his mouth to be bigger than his game.

[clover]

It's beyond ridiculous now, I take it the media are just trying to get back at him for not being nice enough to them. Media have no code or integrity you can't trust anything they say.

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

Exactly. Like I'm sure that's why KG and Pierce discussed in a heart filled interview that they're really going to miss Rondo and made a friend for life. And that's guys like KG talking...

The guy didn't get along with Ray and butted heads with Doc on occasion and all of a sudden he's "extremely unpopular" in the entire locker room. Nah, he's just unpopular among the media since he won't talk to them in detail...

Right, I'm not saying that he can't be difficult (most extremely competitive athletes are) but it's becoming outrageous the amount of "Rondo attitude" articles are being written and most from people that haven't even spoken to him.

Well I don't think his history has been perfect. You don't have to have met an NBA player to judge whether or not there have been probable attitude issues in the past.
I think it's fair to say that Rondo is cocky, extremely self confident and competitive.
I think as far as his history goes we've got Ray Allen saying their beef started because Ray and Rondo were going to be traded for stoudemire and barbosa, and when Ray explained to Rondo that this was because Doc and Danny were upset with Rondos attitude it became personal between Rondo and Ray.
We have reports of Rondo throwing bottles at the screen during practice tape review and more than one verbal altercation with Doc.
We have Rondo head butting an NBA ref in a desperately important playoff game against Atlanta after being warned for doing something similar. This screams of a passion for the game but it also screams a lack of team awareness and somewhat selfishness to do that to your team in the playoffs.
I love the kid but you can't call him an angel. His public record is not squeaky clean.
His former teammate detailing how his coach and general manager wanted to trade them is evidence of friction in the locker room and organization.

All these stories are reported to the public and they might get blown out of proportion but casual NBA fans only get those stories. As celtics fans we see the good and bad but the good far outweighs the bad which also taints our viewpoint/perspective on the matter. Just as Celtics fans generally put their trade value expectations of Rondo as extremely high, yet he often doesn't even make the list of top 5 or 7 point guards in the NBA. Half of this board were outraged when Detroit fans felt Rondo was no where near enough for Drummond. Yet the rest of the NBA fan base felt the same way as detroits fans.

Look at everything from both sides.

I don't think Rondo is perfect, never had, but instead of him making definite statements as if he knows, he can use words along the lines of "reportedly" or something like that. Especially when he's implying Doc left because of him like it's fact.

Besides, I think he already has his opinion of Rondo set given by what he said about him in his article about the most "Overrated Players in NBA"

Rajon Rondo’s ornery, petulant attitude is beginning to have more of a negative effect on the old-and-in-the-way Celtics than his effectiveness on the court.

Kevin Garnett is, and always has been, a choker. Expect him to tally beaucoup points in blow-outs, to be a cheap-shot artist, and for his mouth to be bigger than his game.

What Rondo has been is a first-class jerk to the sports reporters he interacts with.  This weekend Max talked about the reporters who told him how they can't stand the guy--and Grande said he'd had multiple reporters tell him that as well--for the contempt with which he's treated them over the years.

Max actually said if he were to give one piece of advice to Rondo it would be to repair those relationships.  I think articles like this show why it matters.

Also, Stevens already has three NBA-veteran coaches on his bench and has said he'll add at least one more.  (Ron Adams might be termed an 'extremely veteran' coach.)

[CelticG1]

It's beyond ridiculous now, I take it the media are just trying to get back at him for not being nice enough to them. Media have no code or integrity you can't trust anything they say.

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

Exactly. Like I'm sure that's why KG and Pierce discussed in a heart filled interview that they're really going to miss Rondo and made a friend for life. And that's guys like KG talking...

The guy didn't get along with Ray and butted heads with Doc on occasion and all of a sudden he's "extremely unpopular" in the entire locker room. Nah, he's just unpopular among the media since he won't talk to them in detail...

Right, I'm not saying that he can't be difficult (most extremely competitive athletes are) but it's becoming outrageous the amount of "Rondo attitude" articles are being written and most from people that haven't even spoken to him.

Well I don't think his history has been perfect. You don't have to have met an NBA player to judge whether or not there have been probable attitude issues in the past.
I think it's fair to say that Rondo is cocky, extremely self confident and competitive.
I think as far as his history goes we've got Ray Allen saying their beef started because Ray and Rondo were going to be traded for stoudemire and barbosa, and when Ray explained to Rondo that this was because Doc and Danny were upset with Rondos attitude it became personal between Rondo and Ray.
We have reports of Rondo throwing bottles at the screen during practice tape review and more than one verbal altercation with Doc.
We have Rondo head butting an NBA ref in a desperately important playoff game against Atlanta after being warned for doing something similar. This screams of a passion for the game but it also screams a lack of team awareness and somewhat selfishness to do that to your team in the playoffs.
I love the kid but you can't call him an angel. His public record is not squeaky clean.
His former teammate detailing how his coach and general manager wanted to trade them is evidence of friction in the locker room and organization.

All these stories are reported to the public and they might get blown out of proportion but casual NBA fans only get those stories. As celtics fans we see the good and bad but the good far outweighs the bad which also taints our viewpoint/perspective on the matter. Just as Celtics fans generally put their trade value expectations of Rondo as extremely high, yet he often doesn't even make the list of top 5 or 7 point guards in the NBA. Half of this board were outraged when Detroit fans felt Rondo was no where near enough for Drummond. Yet the rest of the NBA fan base felt the same way as detroits fans.

Look at everything from both sides.

I don't think Rondo is perfect, never had, but instead of him making definite statements as if he knows, he can use words along the lines of "reportedly" or something like that. Especially when he's implying Doc left because of him like it's fact.

Besides, I think he already has his opinion of Rondo set given by what he said about him in his article about the most "Overrated Players in NBA"

Rajon Rondo’s ornery, petulant attitude is beginning to have more of a negative effect on the old-and-in-the-way Celtics than his effectiveness on the court.

Kevin Garnett is, and always has been, a choker. Expect him to tally beaucoup points in blow-outs, to be a cheap-shot artist, and for his mouth to be bigger than his game.

What Rondo has been is a first-class jerk to the sports reporters he interacts with.  This weekend Max talked about the reporters who told him how they can't stand the guy--and Grande said he'd had multiple reporters tell him that as well--for the contempt with which he's treated them over the years.

Max actually said if he were to give one piece of advice to Rondo it would be to repair those relationships.  I think articles like this show why it matters.

Also, Stevens already has three NBA-veteran coaches on his bench and has said he'll add at least one more.  (Ron Adams might be termed an 'extremely veteran' coach.)

I find it hilarious that anyone would care about how great a relationship Rondo has with media members.

Its whybi take anything written about him with a gigantic grain of salt.

Its why I laugh and shake my head at cry babies not getting good sound bites from bill belichick.

These guys are fulfilling obligations and contracts. If they aren't fulfilling them they get fined. Just because they don't suck up to you or give you more information shouldn't affect how one views him. And if it does than clearly someone isn't seeing the big picture or at least is getting caught up in the most miniscule of "issues".

[SHAQATTACK]

no doubt he has his work cut out

think he is in touch with the new era players.......old school maybe not so much

[sed522002]

It's beyond ridiculous now, I take it the media are just trying to get back at him for not being nice enough to them. Media have no code or integrity you can't trust anything they say.

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

Exactly. Like I'm sure that's why KG and Pierce discussed in a heart filled interview that they're really going to miss Rondo and made a friend for life. And that's guys like KG talking...

The guy didn't get along with Ray and butted heads with Doc on occasion and all of a sudden he's "extremely unpopular" in the entire locker room. Nah, he's just unpopular among the media since he won't talk to them in detail...

Right, I'm not saying that he can't be difficult (most extremely competitive athletes are) but it's becoming outrageous the amount of "Rondo attitude" articles are being written and most from people that haven't even spoken to him.

Well I don't think his history has been perfect. You don't have to have met an NBA player to judge whether or not there have been probable attitude issues in the past.
I think it's fair to say that Rondo is cocky, extremely self confident and competitive.
I think as far as his history goes we've got Ray Allen saying their beef started because Ray and Rondo were going to be traded for stoudemire and barbosa, and when Ray explained to Rondo that this was because Doc and Danny were upset with Rondos attitude it became personal between Rondo and Ray.
We have reports of Rondo throwing bottles at the screen during practice tape review and more than one verbal altercation with Doc.
We have Rondo head butting an NBA ref in a desperately important playoff game against Atlanta after being warned for doing something similar. This screams of a passion for the game but it also screams a lack of team awareness and somewhat selfishness to do that to your team in the playoffs.
I love the kid but you can't call him an angel. His public record is not squeaky clean.
His former teammate detailing how his coach and general manager wanted to trade them is evidence of friction in the locker room and organization.

All these stories are reported to the public and they might get blown out of proportion but casual NBA fans only get those stories. As celtics fans we see the good and bad but the good far outweighs the bad which also taints our viewpoint/perspective on the matter. Just as Celtics fans generally put their trade value expectations of Rondo as extremely high, yet he often doesn't even make the list of top 5 or 7 point guards in the NBA. Half of this board were outraged when Detroit fans felt Rondo was no where near enough for Drummond. Yet the rest of the NBA fan base felt the same way as detroits fans.

Look at everything from both sides.

I don't think Rondo is perfect, never had, but instead of him making definite statements as if he knows, he can use words along the lines of "reportedly" or something like that. Especially when he's implying Doc left because of him like it's fact.

Besides, I think he already has his opinion of Rondo set given by what he said about him in his article about the most "Overrated Players in NBA"

Rajon Rondo’s ornery, petulant attitude is beginning to have more of a negative effect on the old-and-in-the-way Celtics than his effectiveness on the court.

Kevin Garnett is, and always has been, a choker. Expect him to tally beaucoup points in blow-outs, to be a cheap-shot artist, and for his mouth to be bigger than his game.

What Rondo has been is a first-class jerk to the sports reporters he interacts with.  This weekend Max talked about the reporters who told him how they can't stand the guy--and Grande said he'd had multiple reporters tell him that as well--for the contempt with which he's treated them over the years.

Max actually said if he were to give one piece of advice to Rondo it would be to repair those relationships.  I think articles like this show why it matters.

Also, Stevens already has three NBA-veteran coaches on his bench and has said he'll add at least one more.  (Ron Adams might be termed an 'extremely veteran' coach.)

I bet most of us would oblige the media, but would feel some sort of way about them after reading them rip you to shreds or fabricate stories or bait you for sound bites. Kg gives the media respect,but they know that he's not with any BS and will call them on it. If there's question he doesn't want to answer,he won't and if he doesn't want to speak to them he doesn't.

[LooseCannon]

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

I'd really like some reporter to interview Rondo and ask him what he knows about analytics and how he feels about the use of advanced statistics.  That would probably give us a clue as to whether or not Stevens can forge a solid relationship with Rondo.

  You think Stevens can only get along with players who like advanced stats?

Since Stevens is a young coach without any NBA experience as a player or coach, I think his authority will be respected more by players who accept the stats and that he will work best with someone who understands the reasoning behind the numbers.

[mmmmm]

Personally I'm excited to see Rondo man up and lead the team through a tough season or two. He has an image around the NBA as a bit of a punk who's only good with Hall of Famers around him which I think is bogus.

Do you have any basis for why you assert that?  I suspect that he has 'that image' more with a certain segment of the media and some fans.   

I don't see any real indication that his image 'around the NBA (players, coaches, management) is anything like that.   But I may have missed something.

Major over reaction here IMO.
If you think it's not going to be tough for Stevens have a think about Calipari.

Why?   Other than both having coached at the college level, they seem like completely different people and in completely different situations.

In particular, one of the biggest differences between Calipari's situation with the Nets and Stevens' situation now, is that Calipari wasn't just the coach.  He was the GM.   So, like Pitino, he was given too much control over a business he had no real experience with.   Pitino routinely showed he had no understanding of the CBA rules.

Seriously -- just look at the transaction histories of Calipari and Pitino:

http://www.basketball-reference.com/executives/calipjo99x.html

http://www.basketball-reference.com/executives/pitinri99x.html

if you look at those closely, it's no wonder they failed as coaches.  Their GMs gave them crap to work with.

Stevens is going to be the Coach.   Danny Ainge is going to continue to be the GM of the Boston Celtics.

[BballTim]

It's beyond ridiculous now, I take it the media are just trying to get back at him for not being nice enough to them. Media have no code or integrity you can't trust anything they say.

Even when the Celtics were winning, the outspoken Rondo proved to be extremely unpopular with his teammates and with the since-departed Doc Rivers. How will Stevens handle Rondo?

These are the type of statements that irritate me about writers that have probably never even been around the team before and just sitting behind a computer. They recycle what they've heard as if it's fact.

Exactly. Like I'm sure that's why KG and Pierce discussed in a heart filled interview that they're really going to miss Rondo and made a friend for life. And that's guys like KG talking...

The guy didn't get along with Ray and butted heads with Doc on occasion and all of a sudden he's "extremely unpopular" in the entire locker room. Nah, he's just unpopular among the media since he won't talk to them in detail...

Right, I'm not saying that he can't be difficult (most extremely competitive athletes are) but it's becoming outrageous the amount of "Rondo attitude" articles are being written and most from people that haven't even spoken to him.

Well I don't think his history has been perfect. You don't have to have met an NBA player to judge whether or not there have been probable attitude issues in the past.
I think it's fair to say that Rondo is cocky, extremely self confident and competitive.
I think as far as his history goes we've got Ray Allen saying their beef started because Ray and Rondo were going to be traded for stoudemire and barbosa, and when Ray explained to Rondo that this was because Doc and Danny were upset with Rondos attitude it became personal between Rondo and Ray.

  Ray's a diva. I don't think I'd trust too much of what he said about Rondo after Rajon lobbied for Doc to put Avery into the starting lineup.

  Besides, when Danny was packaging Ray and Rondo, Rondo was the young talent we were sending out and Ray was the salary going out so we could bring back a highly paid player.