« Reply #47 on: August 26, 2014, 05:46:14 PM »
I think the chances of Rondo leaving Boston (so long as Ainge is willing to give a reasonable contract) aren't going to be significantly greater than the chances of Carmelo Anthony leaving New York this summer (which were non-zero, but not enough to justify trying to trade Melo for whatever you can get back).
Melo is a New York guy. That's where he's always wanted to play. His wife wants him there. They are a borderline playoff team who just brought in arguably one of the greatest basketball minds of all time to run the team.
I think there's a much greater chance of rondo leaving boston. It's a bad team. He's surrounded by kids. His coach is coming off a rookie campaign where he lead them to a bottom 5 record. The team has consistently been open to trading him.
If rondo reaches free agency, I don't think we will be the front runner to sign him. Based on his interview comments a couple months ago, I'd guess he leaves for a contender.
We certainly don't have the hometown draw with Rondo, but we didn't with Pierce either. Rondo will be dealing with the same ownership/brass that drafted him, kept him out of the Big 3 deals, won a championship with him, and resigned him. Of course they also tried to trade him for CP3 and maybe others, but there's some brand loyalty and respect built in there that other teams won't have.
Had Pierce reached unrestricted free agency in 2005ish, we would have had trouble keeping him too.
Rondo wants to play for a contender. LIstened to an interview with him a couple months ago where he said he would leave Miami if he was in LeBron's shoes, because that team no longer could win a title... interesting considering MIami just made the finals. If Rondo (in LeBron's shoes) thinks Miami isn't good enough to stick around with... clearly this garbage team isn't up to his level of standards. If he reaches free agency, we will not be the frontrunner to keep him... unless something dramatic happens between now and then... like signing another couple stars to lead the team... or some of our young kids making a shocking leap... or landing the #1 pick in the draft and dangling it for a superstar.
Pierce extended right in the middle of our dark ages (surrounded by kids & bums). Not the same as UFA, but comparable team circumstances.
Notice which team LBJ left Miami for: a younger team with the assets to land another star peer. Obviously we don't have #1 picks for toilet paper like they do in Cleveland, but we're a lot closer to that kind of asset wealth than a team like Miami that had a rapidly decomposing supporting cast (Wade, Battier, Ray, Birdman, Haslem), no cap flexibility to add anyone else of significance and no disposable trade assets of note.
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