NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz Surrounding Kobe Bryant and Rajon Rondo
It’s hard to feel sorry for Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics fans considering the two franchises basically had a monopoly on the Larry O’Brien Trophy for so many years.
However, the 2014-15 season is not going to be pretty for either legendary team. Neither squad will reach the postseason, and trade rumors will likely circulate around both franchises all year, even for the superstar players.
With that in mind, read on to see the latest on Kobe Bryant and Rajon Rondo.
Kobe Bryant
Mitch Lawrence of Forbes provided an update on Bryant:
“But from what we can tell, talking to industry sources familiar with the Lakers’ thinking, No. 24 isn’t going anywhere. He’s got a no-trade clause and the Lakers have a no-trade mindset.”
Lawrence also passed along a quote from an NBA team president that would seem to suggest the same thing:
“I don’t see them trading Kobe, not at all. The Lakers almost have to keep him, as much for business reasons as anything else, and I believe that’s what they’re going to do.”
Those business reasons are important since the Lakers are not going to compete for a playoff spot this season. Bryant is the main draw at the box office, and Los Angeles is a town built on stars. All those celebrities sitting courtside at the Staples Center, as well as those tuning in to the television broadcasts, would be less inclined to follow the Lakers without Mr. Bryant.
That would be a problem for the NBA’s second-most valuable franchise (behind only the New York Knicks, per Lawrence).
What’s more, there probably aren’t a lot of teams lining up to trade for Bryant given his $48.5 million contract and age (36 years old).
The Knicks have been discussed because of his familiarity with the triangle offense and coach Derek Fisher, but New York is rebuilding this season. Giving up young or future assets for an aging superstar is not how you go about building a championship contender, even if that superstar is Bryant.
Bryant will be a Laker the rest of his career.
Rajon Rondo
Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated provided an update on Rondo through a quote from an Eastern Conference executive:
"I don’t know how high it is. He is a free agent at the end of the year. A team that trades for him will have half a season to convince him to stay. He has to be in a city that he wants to be in. If he didn’t get hurt last year his value would have been higher then. A team would have had a year and a half and convince him to stay. And I don’t know how many teams truly need a starting point guard. Houston needs one. The Lakers. But if you’re the Lakers, why would you give up anything for him now when you can try to sign him this summer?
"
Rondo may be the superstar in Boston and the biggest draw for the team, but the Celtics are in full-blown rebuild mode.
They landed Marcus Smart and James Young in the last draft and have Jared Sullinger as a promising young big man down low. The Celtics are still a couple of pieces away from having a formidable core that will develop together, and Rondo is the best trade chip they have at their disposal.
Even if the Celtics didn’t get any notable young players back in a Rondo trade (which they probably would), they could get draft picks to help in the future.
Plus, trading Rondo would open up the point guard spot for Smart so that the Celtics can see what they fully have in the Oklahoma State product. Smart will be the eventual starting point guard for the Celtics, so the more experience he can accumulate as a rookie, the better off he will be in the long term.
Rondo is averaging 10.1 points, 12 assists and 8.1 rebounds a game in the early going and is a walking triple-double threat every time he takes the floor.
That early season performance is exactly what the Celtics need if they are going to trade him away. Rondo is an excellent player, but he represents the past for Boston.
It’s time to look toward the future.
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