can Rondo play in the Spurs system?

[LarBrd33]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

  Why don't you start me out with a list of players who control the ball as much as Rondo does,

... Nobody.    The only player who dominates the ball as much as Rondo this season was John Wall and you'd have to take his 19 and 9 over Rondo's 12 and 9.   Rondo dominates the ball... there is concrete statistical evidence that proves he exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  You earlier claimed that Parker controls the ball as much.  False.  He doesn't.  Statistical evidence points to the fact that Parker touches and possesses the ball significantly less than Rondo does.  Rondo dominates the ball more than superstar offensive weapons like Kevin Durant and LeBron James.  If stats point to one thing... it's that Rajon Rondo did not play in a ball-sharing offense this season.  The ball was his.

Another possible comparison would be Sacramento's Isiah Thomas to who has the ball in his hands 7.6 minutes out of 19 (40%)... but he averages 9 less touches per game (84.1 out of 388 - 21.6%) ... the percentage of touches is about even though. 

But again, Thomas averaged 21.1 points and 6.5 assists per 36 mins... his increased scoring makes up for his lack of assists.

Point is... you give a player the ball more than anyone on the court... if he's not scoring the ball he's going to be getting a ton of assists.    But not everyone can flourish in a ball-sharing offense (the Spurs)... you need to be a viable offensive weapon to survive in that system.  Rondo is not a scorer or a shooter... he would probably have trouble if they kept the system the same.  Rondo is a great player... but for him to maximize his impact, he needs the ball in his hands.  Without the ball, he's an offensive liability.

[BballTim]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

http://bkref.com/tiny/rS2Jd

I used Usage rate for 'controls the ball as much'

And they had to have qualified for the Minutes Per Game leaderboard.

What does usage have to do with ball-dominating?  It just means they were on the floor.  I'm talking about...find me a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo, scores as little as he does... I'm fairly certain they'd average as many assists.

This year, Rondo was 4th in the entire league in "Touches Per Game".  The 3 players above him:

Kemba Walker - 17.7 points, 6 assists
John Wall - 19.3 points, 8.8 assists
Chris Paul - 19 points, 10.7 assists

... They all make up for lack of assists by scoring

Parker was 29th ... He averages about 20 less touches per game than Rondo.

Rondo is also 2nd in the league in "Time of Possession"... almost tied with John Wall.  Parker is 25th...

Again, this is about my theory that Tony Parker could average 11 assists if he controlled the ball as much as Rondo and only had to score 12 points per night. 

Spurs had 447.7 touches per game this season.  Parker had 75.5.

Celtics had 418.7 touches per game.  Rondo had 93.1 (4th in the entire league)

I suck at math.  Doesn't that mean Parker had 16.8% of his team's touches and Rondo had 22.2% of his teams touches?

Of course, this is interesting if my interpretation of "touches" is correct, because in a team that lacks ball movement, you'd expect Rondo's "touches" to be less, right?  Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back.  Yet, he still averages the 4th most touches in the entire league.    Let's look at time of possession...

  Your math probably isn't that bad, but the disparity between what you think happens in a game and what those numbers show is fairly significant. You seem to have figured out on your own that your expectation of Rondo's "touches" was way off what the numbers say. It's also worth pointing out that "Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back" isn't true either. It's true that Rondo led the league in passes for assist opportunities per game. It's also true that he was second in the league in passes that weren't for assist opportunities per game. The expectation that he won't see the ball again after he passes it isn't realistic, in fact he's significantly more likely to have multiple touches in a possession than Parker.

[Tr1boy]

yeah but why??   I see Rondo directing guys constantly instead of setting screens , going around screens and trying to get open to score baskets.

The first game he was back i thought he was a changed player. He was posting up (scored a sweet up and under basket). KO made two other nice passes for Rondo to score open baskets.

Then after he goes back to having to be the guy that has to do all the passing.   He passes off to Bass, tries PnR or PnP and if it doesn't work, he wants the ball back.

This is the anti spurs way to play ball

[LarBrd33]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

http://bkref.com/tiny/rS2Jd

I used Usage rate for 'controls the ball as much'

And they had to have qualified for the Minutes Per Game leaderboard.

What does usage have to do with ball-dominating?  It just means they were on the floor.  I'm talking about...find me a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo, scores as little as he does... I'm fairly certain they'd average as many assists.

This year, Rondo was 4th in the entire league in "Touches Per Game".  The 3 players above him:

Kemba Walker - 17.7 points, 6 assists
John Wall - 19.3 points, 8.8 assists
Chris Paul - 19 points, 10.7 assists

... They all make up for lack of assists by scoring

Parker was 29th ... He averages about 20 less touches per game than Rondo.

Rondo is also 2nd in the league in "Time of Possession"... almost tied with John Wall.  Parker is 25th...

Again, this is about my theory that Tony Parker could average 11 assists if he controlled the ball as much as Rondo and only had to score 12 points per night. 

Spurs had 447.7 touches per game this season.  Parker had 75.5.

Celtics had 418.7 touches per game.  Rondo had 93.1 (4th in the entire league)

I suck at math.  Doesn't that mean Parker had 16.8% of his team's touches and Rondo had 22.2% of his teams touches?

Of course, this is interesting if my interpretation of "touches" is correct, because in a team that lacks ball movement, you'd expect Rondo's "touches" to be less, right?  Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back.  Yet, he still averages the 4th most touches in the entire league.    Let's look at time of possession...

  Your math probably isn't that bad, but the disparity between what you think happens in a game and what those numbers show is fairly significant. You seem to have figured out on your own that your expectation of Rondo's "touches" was way off what the numbers say. It's also worth pointing out that "Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back" isn't true either. It's true that Rondo led the league in passes for assist opportunities per game. It's also true that he was second in the league in passes that weren't for assist opportunities per game. The expectation that he won't see the ball again after he passes it isn't realistic, in fact he's significantly more likely to have multiple touches in a possession than Parker.

Which again... all points to the fact that Rondo exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  The ball needs to be in his hands as much as possible... reason being:  He's a offensive liability without the ball.  He's not a scoring threat.  He's not spreading the floor.  Defenses don't need to worry about him when someone else has the ball.  Better get the ball back to Rondo so he can be effective.  You are basically backing up my statements.    The thing is, the Spurs do not run a Parker-centric offense (on the same level that the Celtics run a Rondo-centric offense).  The Spurs share the ball and they can have others create while Parker continues to be a offensive threat without the ball in his hands.

That's something that I'm concerned Rondo can not do heading forward.  I still think he's an elite talent and can be very effective... it just needs to be in a system that tailors to his strengths.

Another way of thinking about it... for years we heard about how Ray Allen is an impact-player even when he isn't shooting well.  Reason being, defenses NEED to respect Ray Allen.  They have to keep attention on him even when he doesn't have the ball.  You can't slack off Ray Allen... that dude is a threat.  His mere presence on the floor makes it easier for everyone else on offense.   Rondo is basically the anti-Ray.   WHen he doesn't have the ball, defenses don't really need to worry about him.  Like Shaq when he was beyond the 3-point line... feel free to ignore him... don't worry about him until he gets the ball on the post.  This is why Rondo would struggle in the Spurs system.

[Tr1boy]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

http://bkref.com/tiny/rS2Jd

I used Usage rate for 'controls the ball as much'

And they had to have qualified for the Minutes Per Game leaderboard.

What does usage have to do with ball-dominating?  It just means they were on the floor.  I'm talking about...find me a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo, scores as little as he does... I'm fairly certain they'd average as many assists.

This year, Rondo was 4th in the entire league in "Touches Per Game".  The 3 players above him:

Kemba Walker - 17.7 points, 6 assists
John Wall - 19.3 points, 8.8 assists
Chris Paul - 19 points, 10.7 assists

... They all make up for lack of assists by scoring

Parker was 29th ... He averages about 20 less touches per game than Rondo.

Rondo is also 2nd in the league in "Time of Possession"... almost tied with John Wall.  Parker is 25th...

Again, this is about my theory that Tony Parker could average 11 assists if he controlled the ball as much as Rondo and only had to score 12 points per night. 

Spurs had 447.7 touches per game this season.  Parker had 75.5.

Celtics had 418.7 touches per game.  Rondo had 93.1 (4th in the entire league)

I suck at math.  Doesn't that mean Parker had 16.8% of his team's touches and Rondo had 22.2% of his teams touches?

Of course, this is interesting if my interpretation of "touches" is correct, because in a team that lacks ball movement, you'd expect Rondo's "touches" to be less, right?  Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back.  Yet, he still averages the 4th most touches in the entire league.    Let's look at time of possession...

  Your math probably isn't that bad, but the disparity between what you think happens in a game and what those numbers show is fairly significant. You seem to have figured out on your own that your expectation of Rondo's "touches" was way off what the numbers say. It's also worth pointing out that "Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back" isn't true either. It's true that Rondo led the league in passes for assist opportunities per game. It's also true that he was second in the league in passes that weren't for assist opportunities per game. The expectation that he won't see the ball again after he passes it isn't realistic, in fact he's significantly more likely to have multiple touches in a possession than Parker.

Which again... all points to the fact that Rondo exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  The ball needs to be in his hands as much as possible... reason being:  He's a offensive liability without the ball.  He's not a scoring threat.  He's not spreading the floor.  Defenses don't need to worry about him when someone else has the ball.  Better get the ball back to Rondo so he can be effective.  You are basically backing up my statements.    The thing is, the Spurs do not run a Parker-centric offense (on the same level that the Celtics run a Rondo-centric offense).  The Spurs share the ball and they can have others create while Parker continues to be a offensive threat without the ball in his hands.

That's something that I'm concerned Rondo can not do heading forward.  I still think he's an elite talent and can be very effective... it just needs to be in a system that tailors to his strengths.

good points.  That's why if your going to committ to rebuilding around Rondo, then do it properly. Draft mcdermott, tj warren or hariston. Guys who excel off the ball.  Don't draft a Marcus Smart who is better to play on a team that shares the ball more

[BballTim]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

  Why don't you start me out with a list of players who control the ball as much as Rondo does,

... Nobody.    The only player who dominates the ball as much as Rondo this season was John Wall and you'd have to take his 19 and 9 over Rondo's 12 and 9.   Rondo dominates the ball... there is concrete statistical evidence that proves he exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  You earlier claimed that Parker controls the ball as much.  False.  He doesn't.  Statistical evidence points to the fact that Parker touches and possesses the ball significantly less than Rondo does.  Rondo dominates the ball more than superstar offensive weapons like Kevin Durant and LeBron James.  If stats point to one thing... it's that Rajon Rondo did not play in a ball-sharing offense this season.  The ball was his.

   I was wrong earlier, your math isn't that great. When you figure time of possession you're not accounting for playing time. So Rondo has the ball almost 42% of the time, if you adjust Parkers's number for the fact that he plays fewer minutes it would be about 38%. If you watched two random players in a game that were that close you'd probably have trouble picking out which one had the ball more.

[LarBrd33]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

  Why don't you start me out with a list of players who control the ball as much as Rondo does,

... Nobody.    The only player who dominates the ball as much as Rondo this season was John Wall and you'd have to take his 19 and 9 over Rondo's 12 and 9.   Rondo dominates the ball... there is concrete statistical evidence that proves he exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  You earlier claimed that Parker controls the ball as much.  False.  He doesn't.  Statistical evidence points to the fact that Parker touches and possesses the ball significantly less than Rondo does.  Rondo dominates the ball more than superstar offensive weapons like Kevin Durant and LeBron James.  If stats point to one thing... it's that Rajon Rondo did not play in a ball-sharing offense this season.  The ball was his.

   I was wrong earlier

No problem, Tim.

lol jk.   Can't wait for next season.  But yes, to your above point... if you gave Parker more minutes, more possessions, and asked him to score less... he'd have no trouble averaging 12 and 11 like Rondo.  Glad we are in full agreement on that.

[BballTim]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

http://bkref.com/tiny/rS2Jd

I used Usage rate for 'controls the ball as much'

And they had to have qualified for the Minutes Per Game leaderboard.

What does usage have to do with ball-dominating?  It just means they were on the floor.  I'm talking about...find me a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo, scores as little as he does... I'm fairly certain they'd average as many assists.

This year, Rondo was 4th in the entire league in "Touches Per Game".  The 3 players above him:

Kemba Walker - 17.7 points, 6 assists
John Wall - 19.3 points, 8.8 assists
Chris Paul - 19 points, 10.7 assists

... They all make up for lack of assists by scoring

Parker was 29th ... He averages about 20 less touches per game than Rondo.

Rondo is also 2nd in the league in "Time of Possession"... almost tied with John Wall.  Parker is 25th...

Again, this is about my theory that Tony Parker could average 11 assists if he controlled the ball as much as Rondo and only had to score 12 points per night. 

Spurs had 447.7 touches per game this season.  Parker had 75.5.

Celtics had 418.7 touches per game.  Rondo had 93.1 (4th in the entire league)

I suck at math.  Doesn't that mean Parker had 16.8% of his team's touches and Rondo had 22.2% of his teams touches?

Of course, this is interesting if my interpretation of "touches" is correct, because in a team that lacks ball movement, you'd expect Rondo's "touches" to be less, right?  Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back.  Yet, he still averages the 4th most touches in the entire league.    Let's look at time of possession...

  Your math probably isn't that bad, but the disparity between what you think happens in a game and what those numbers show is fairly significant. You seem to have figured out on your own that your expectation of Rondo's "touches" was way off what the numbers say. It's also worth pointing out that "Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back" isn't true either. It's true that Rondo led the league in passes for assist opportunities per game. It's also true that he was second in the league in passes that weren't for assist opportunities per game. The expectation that he won't see the ball again after he passes it isn't realistic, in fact he's significantly more likely to have multiple touches in a possession than Parker.

Which again... all points to the fact that Rondo exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  The ball needs to be in his hands as much as possible... reason being:  He's a offensive liability without the ball.  He's not a scoring threat.  He's not spreading the floor.  Defenses don't need to worry about him when someone else has the ball.

  No, the reason the ball needs to be in his hands a lot is because he's so good at passing the ball and creating shots for others. You're over exaggerating the "floor spreading" effect. Teams routinely give players plenty of space on the perimeter. Rondo's not afraid to shoot when left open and he (when healthy) hits them at a decent clip. You seem to think that Rondo's defender completely ignores him and goes all over the court while Parker's sticks to him like glue when he doesn't have the ball. Neither is true.

[BballTim]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

  Why don't you start me out with a list of players who control the ball as much as Rondo does,

... Nobody.    The only player who dominates the ball as much as Rondo this season was John Wall and you'd have to take his 19 and 9 over Rondo's 12 and 9.   Rondo dominates the ball... there is concrete statistical evidence that proves he exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  You earlier claimed that Parker controls the ball as much.  False.  He doesn't.  Statistical evidence points to the fact that Parker touches and possesses the ball significantly less than Rondo does.  Rondo dominates the ball more than superstar offensive weapons like Kevin Durant and LeBron James.  If stats point to one thing... it's that Rajon Rondo did not play in a ball-sharing offense this season.  The ball was his.

   I was wrong earlier

No problem, Tim.

lol jk.   Can't wait for next season.  But yes, to your above point... if you gave Parker more minutes, more possessions, and asked him to score less... he'd have no trouble averaging 12 and 11 like Rondo.  Glad we are in full agreement on that.

  The sad thing is I can't rule out the likelihood that you actually do think we're in full agreement about that.

[LarBrd33]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

  Why don't you start me out with a list of players who control the ball as much as Rondo does,

... Nobody.    The only player who dominates the ball as much as Rondo this season was John Wall and you'd have to take his 19 and 9 over Rondo's 12 and 9.   Rondo dominates the ball... there is concrete statistical evidence that proves he exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  You earlier claimed that Parker controls the ball as much.  False.  He doesn't.  Statistical evidence points to the fact that Parker touches and possesses the ball significantly less than Rondo does.  Rondo dominates the ball more than superstar offensive weapons like Kevin Durant and LeBron James.  If stats point to one thing... it's that Rajon Rondo did not play in a ball-sharing offense this season.  The ball was his.

   I was wrong earlier

No problem, Tim.

lol jk.   Can't wait for next season.  But yes, to your above point... if you gave Parker more minutes, more possessions, and asked him to score less... he'd have no trouble averaging 12 and 11 like Rondo.  Glad we are in full agreement on that.

  The sad thing is I can't rule out the likelihood that you actually do think we're in full agreement about that.

I think if someone is willing to jump to conclusions that Rondo could flourish in Tony Parker's role (despite the fact that Rondo career lack of scoring ability seems to suggest otherwise), it's less of a leap to jump to conclusions that Tony Parker would flourish in Rondo's role... don't worry about scoring just direct offense and get your assists.  Whereas there is statistical evidence (Rondo's shooting percentages) that points to Rondo being unable to fill the Tony Parker role... there isn't any evidence that suggest Parker couldn't fill the Rondo role. 

[Tr1boy]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

http://bkref.com/tiny/rS2Jd

I used Usage rate for 'controls the ball as much'

And they had to have qualified for the Minutes Per Game leaderboard.

What does usage have to do with ball-dominating?  It just means they were on the floor.  I'm talking about...find me a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo, scores as little as he does... I'm fairly certain they'd average as many assists.

This year, Rondo was 4th in the entire league in "Touches Per Game".  The 3 players above him:

Kemba Walker - 17.7 points, 6 assists
John Wall - 19.3 points, 8.8 assists
Chris Paul - 19 points, 10.7 assists

... They all make up for lack of assists by scoring

Parker was 29th ... He averages about 20 less touches per game than Rondo.

Rondo is also 2nd in the league in "Time of Possession"... almost tied with John Wall.  Parker is 25th...

Again, this is about my theory that Tony Parker could average 11 assists if he controlled the ball as much as Rondo and only had to score 12 points per night. 

Spurs had 447.7 touches per game this season.  Parker had 75.5.

Celtics had 418.7 touches per game.  Rondo had 93.1 (4th in the entire league)

I suck at math.  Doesn't that mean Parker had 16.8% of his team's touches and Rondo had 22.2% of his teams touches?

Of course, this is interesting if my interpretation of "touches" is correct, because in a team that lacks ball movement, you'd expect Rondo's "touches" to be less, right?  Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back.  Yet, he still averages the 4th most touches in the entire league.    Let's look at time of possession...

  Your math probably isn't that bad, but the disparity between what you think happens in a game and what those numbers show is fairly significant. You seem to have figured out on your own that your expectation of Rondo's "touches" was way off what the numbers say. It's also worth pointing out that "Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back" isn't true either. It's true that Rondo led the league in passes for assist opportunities per game. It's also true that he was second in the league in passes that weren't for assist opportunities per game. The expectation that he won't see the ball again after he passes it isn't realistic, in fact he's significantly more likely to have multiple touches in a possession than Parker.

Which again... all points to the fact that Rondo exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  The ball needs to be in his hands as much as possible... reason being:  He's a offensive liability without the ball.  He's not a scoring threat.  He's not spreading the floor.  Defenses don't need to worry about him when someone else has the ball.

  No, the reason the ball needs to be in his hands a lot is because he's so good at passing the ball and creating shots for others. You're over exaggerating the "floor spreading" effect. Teams routinely give players plenty of space on the perimeter. Rondo's not afraid to shoot when left open and he (when healthy) hits them at a decent clip. You seem to think that Rondo's defender completely ignores him and goes all over the court while Parker's sticks to him like glue when he doesn't have the ball. Neither is true.

i disagree if you think thats the most effective way to run an offense. Look at the Spurs. Look at the Heat , think back to the 2007-2008 celtics team. They are sharing the ball all over the place, getting easy baskets.   Also this helps everybody sync on the defensive end

If  Rondo was like Jordon and can't be stopped 1 on 1 thats one thing. But Rondo is no Jordan

[BballTim]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

  Why don't you start me out with a list of players who control the ball as much as Rondo does,

... Nobody.    The only player who dominates the ball as much as Rondo this season was John Wall and you'd have to take his 19 and 9 over Rondo's 12 and 9.   Rondo dominates the ball... there is concrete statistical evidence that proves he exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  You earlier claimed that Parker controls the ball as much.  False.  He doesn't.  Statistical evidence points to the fact that Parker touches and possesses the ball significantly less than Rondo does.  Rondo dominates the ball more than superstar offensive weapons like Kevin Durant and LeBron James.  If stats point to one thing... it's that Rajon Rondo did not play in a ball-sharing offense this season.  The ball was his.

   I was wrong earlier

No problem, Tim.

lol jk.   Can't wait for next season.  But yes, to your above point... if you gave Parker more minutes, more possessions, and asked him to score less... he'd have no trouble averaging 12 and 11 like Rondo.  Glad we are in full agreement on that.

  The sad thing is I can't rule out the likelihood that you actually do think we're in full agreement about that.

I think if someone is willing to jump to conclusions that Rondo could flourish in Tony Parker's role (despite the fact that Rondo career lack of scoring ability seems to suggest otherwise), it's less of a leap to jump to conclusions that Tony Parker would flourish in Rondo's role... don't worry about scoring just direct offense and get your assists.  Whereas there is statistical evidence (Rondo's shooting percentages) that points to Rondo being unable to fill the Tony Parker role... there isn't any evidence that suggest Parker couldn't fill the Rondo role.

  First of all the difference in assists between Rondo and Parker is likely wider than the difference in scoring. Secondly I didn't say Rondo would flourish in Parker's role, I said he'd flourish in the Spurs offense. He'd still be more of a passer than a scorer, that would be a great fit with good shooters. I'd say it's more the case that you don't know whether there's any evidence than there isn't any, but the real evidence comes from having seen both of them play over a number of years.

[BballTim]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

http://bkref.com/tiny/rS2Jd

I used Usage rate for 'controls the ball as much'

And they had to have qualified for the Minutes Per Game leaderboard.

What does usage have to do with ball-dominating?  It just means they were on the floor.  I'm talking about...find me a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo, scores as little as he does... I'm fairly certain they'd average as many assists.

This year, Rondo was 4th in the entire league in "Touches Per Game".  The 3 players above him:

Kemba Walker - 17.7 points, 6 assists
John Wall - 19.3 points, 8.8 assists
Chris Paul - 19 points, 10.7 assists

... They all make up for lack of assists by scoring

Parker was 29th ... He averages about 20 less touches per game than Rondo.

Rondo is also 2nd in the league in "Time of Possession"... almost tied with John Wall.  Parker is 25th...

Again, this is about my theory that Tony Parker could average 11 assists if he controlled the ball as much as Rondo and only had to score 12 points per night. 

Spurs had 447.7 touches per game this season.  Parker had 75.5.

Celtics had 418.7 touches per game.  Rondo had 93.1 (4th in the entire league)

I suck at math.  Doesn't that mean Parker had 16.8% of his team's touches and Rondo had 22.2% of his teams touches?

Of course, this is interesting if my interpretation of "touches" is correct, because in a team that lacks ball movement, you'd expect Rondo's "touches" to be less, right?  Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back.  Yet, he still averages the 4th most touches in the entire league.    Let's look at time of possession...

  Your math probably isn't that bad, but the disparity between what you think happens in a game and what those numbers show is fairly significant. You seem to have figured out on your own that your expectation of Rondo's "touches" was way off what the numbers say. It's also worth pointing out that "Once he passes the ball, it's in an assist-generating situation and he's unlikely to see the ball back" isn't true either. It's true that Rondo led the league in passes for assist opportunities per game. It's also true that he was second in the league in passes that weren't for assist opportunities per game. The expectation that he won't see the ball again after he passes it isn't realistic, in fact he's significantly more likely to have multiple touches in a possession than Parker.

Which again... all points to the fact that Rondo exists in a Rondo-centric offense.  The ball needs to be in his hands as much as possible... reason being:  He's a offensive liability without the ball.  He's not a scoring threat.  He's not spreading the floor.  Defenses don't need to worry about him when someone else has the ball.

  No, the reason the ball needs to be in his hands a lot is because he's so good at passing the ball and creating shots for others. You're over exaggerating the "floor spreading" effect. Teams routinely give players plenty of space on the perimeter. Rondo's not afraid to shoot when left open and he (when healthy) hits them at a decent clip. You seem to think that Rondo's defender completely ignores him and goes all over the court while Parker's sticks to him like glue when he doesn't have the ball. Neither is true.

i disagree if you think thats the most effective way to run an offense. Look at the Spurs. Look at the Heat , think back to the 2007-2008 celtics team. They are sharing the ball all over the place, getting easy baskets.   Also this helps everybody sync on the defensive end

If  Rondo was like Jordon and can't be stopped 1 on 1 thats one thing. But Rondo is no Jordan

  No, Rondo's not like MJ. He shares the ball all over the place, getting his teammates easy baskets.

[Celtics4ever]

Rondo could flourish in Tony Parker's role (despite the fact that Rondo career lack of scoring ability seems to suggest otherwise), it's less of a leap to jump to conclusions that Tony Parker would flourish in Rondo's role

I also think it would help Rondo's game to play with Duncan and the Spurs shooters.   Parker is a better shooter than Rondo hands down.   However, I think Parker would be doubled on the C's as currently composed.   His numbers would go down because teams can play off our bigs and wings.  So while he would still score better than Rondo, I think it would diminish his threat somewhat.  I don't Rondo will ever be as good as Parker though because Parker is all around a better shooter.

[D.o.s.]

Cool tim.  Give me an example of a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo does, averages less than 14 points... and doesn't average over 9 assists.

http://bkref.com/tiny/rS2Jd

I used Usage rate for 'controls the ball as much'

And they had to have qualified for the Minutes Per Game leaderboard.

What does usage have to do with ball-dominating?  It just means they were on the floor.  I'm talking about...find me a player who controls the ball as much as Rondo, scores as little as he does... I'm fairly certain they'd average as many assists.

This year, Rondo was 4th in the entire league in "Touches Per Game".  The 3 players above him:

Kemba Walker - 17.7 points, 6 assists
John Wall - 19.3 points, 8.8 assists
Chris Paul - 19 points, 10.7 assists

... They all make up for lack of assists by scoring

Parker was 29th ... He averages about 20 less touches per game than Rondo.

Rondo is also 2nd in the league in "Time of Possession"... almost tied with John Wall.  Parker is 25th...

No attempt to delve into the incremental differences between the 7 Time of Possession Leaders?

On the stats page, which you didn't link to, by the way, but can be found here, for interested parties:

http://stats.nba.com/playerTrackingTouches.html?pageNo=1&rowsPerPage=25&SeasonType=Regular%20Season&sortField=TOP&sortOrder=DES

Interestingly, Rondo's the only one of those guys who leads those players in Close Touches (touches that start from within 12 feet of the basket, meaning someone else passed it back out to him) and elbow touches, and he's not even close to the leader in front court touches per game.

So, is Rondo ball dominant, or is he just the guy everyone else on his team gives the ball to? And there's a big difference between the two.