Rajon Rondo Comments on Bulls' Decision to Bench PG

Things are not well in Chicago with Bulls guard Rajon Rondo and management after the veteran's inability to get playing time in the last five games.  

They aren't seeing eye-to-eye either. Rondo told the media, per K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, that the team was trying to "save him from himself."

That didn't fly with the 30-year-old, who said that he "thought it was bulls--t."

The explanation didn't come from Bulls head coach Fred Hoiberg, as Rondo explained that he was told that by "another guy on the staff," per Johnson.

The lines of communication haven't necessarily been open, either, between the disgruntled guard and his head coach:

Rondo last appeared in a game for the Bulls on Dec. 30 against the Indiana Pacers. He played 10:50 that night and was a minus-20 in the process, which is what he attributed to "as part of the reason," for his lack of playing time since then. 

In the 29 games that he's played in this season, Rondo averaged 7.2 points and 7.1 assists per game, which are among the worst marks of his career.

He's also had a negative rating in 13 of those games and a mark of minus-10 or worse seven times. All 13 games have been losses for Chicago, per Basketball-Reference.com.

The Bulls were 3-2 without Rondo during that stretch and are just 19-19 this season, which is a letdown for a team that looked poised to challenge for a top-four spot in the Eastern Conference after acquiring Rondo and Dwyane Wade to team up with Jimmy Butler. 

It's forced Rondo to reflect on his short time in Chicago, too, as he admitted that "it’s a lot different than what I anticipated," per Johnson. 

With the Bulls in Washington on Tuesday to play the Wizards, Rondo will be the sixth man, according to Johnson.

That means he will at least find the floor for the first time in 2017. But if he's not utilized for long, then the rift between him and the team will only grow.