Celtics Trade Rumors: Danny Ainge Wise to Refuse Offers for Rajon Rondo

Apparently, the Boston Celtics are not going to trade Rajon Rondo. A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE reports than Danny Ainge, Boston's president of basketball operations, said, "Rondo's not being traded I don't know how many times I have to say it. Rondo's not being traded."

That should (but won't) put the trade rumors to rest, and it's a good decision on Ainge's part. It's not just the player that Rondo is that makes him untradable. It's the contract he has. 

First, he is one of the top two or three distributors in the league, along with Steven Nash and Chris Paul. His court vision is really something special that you can't just duplicate or find easily. 

While it's easy to see his court vision and awareness from looking at his assist numbers, the other thing that shows it is his rebounding numbers. When you look at the number of rebounds he has, and how most of them are grabbed on his feet, you realize it's all about positioning. 

Rondo seems to always know where to be on the court, at any given time. He's one of the smartest players in the league. 

He also has a tremendous ability to get to the rim and penetrate breaking down defenses. Only four point guards have made more shots at the rim than Rondo. 

You can argue that he's a jump shot away from being in the conversation from being one of the top five point guards in the league. He only makes 34.8 percent of his jump shots and just 23.5 percent of his threes. So that's an accurate criticism. 

But here's the thing: he's not paid like Derrick Rose or Chris Paul. In fact, his contract is so reasonable, you can argue that Rondo is underpaid. He makes just $10 million this year and that goes up one million a year for the next three years. 

Where else are you going to find elite to near-elite production at that kind of price?

With the new CBA the cost of being over the luxury tax is scary. Having a player who contributes on the level of Rondo at a competitive cost is enormous.

You can argue that you can't build a championship around a player who is not an elite scorer, but there's no rule that says you have to start with the player you build around. The Bulls didn't "build around" Luol Deng, but his production is worthy of his relatively low cost.

The Celtics will have a ton of money freed up with Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Jermaine O'Neal all with expiring contracts next year. That will leave them plenty of money to pursue an elite player in free agency. They are obligated to just $31 million. 

Ainge is doing the smart thing by retaining Rondo. For all the reasons that Rondo is the most tradable player they have, he's their most keepable player. It's hard to see how, when you factor in his contract, the Celtics could get a better return in a trade.