The Boston Celtics are focusing on trying to build a winning team in the future and part of that could include bringing on Rajon Rondo long term. The only hangup in getting Rondo a long term deal seems to be that the point guard doesn’t want to commit to a rebuilding team, and that has started rumors about him leaving in free agency.
Those rumors were not helped when Rondo noted he was intrigued by free agency, but GM Danny Ainge is not letting any of the rumors get to him. Ainge spoke about the Ronodo free agency situation and noted that the fact that people are talking about Kevin Durant hitting free agency in 2016 tells you all you need to know about free agent rumors.
Per A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com:
"”Come on, man! They’re talking about Kevin Durant‘s free agency in 2016 already; Carmelo Anthony. It’s ridiculous. It becomes a story because not very many people understand what free agency brings to Carmelo and Kevin Durant and [Rondo]. It gives them (the potential for) five-year max contracts which are way more significant than two-year extensions, three-year extensions. And they have to say thesethings. From my perspective, it’s like, ‘duh.’ If you’re around the NBA, those are like obvious things.“"
Boston may still end up parting ways with Rondo, but Ainge seems confident that the two sides are being more mature about the matter than how it’s being portrayed in the media.