Fansided

The Sad Decline of Rajon Rondo

By Daniel Tran

Apr 13, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Rajon Rondo (9) leaves the court after losing to the Utah Jazz 109-92 at EnergySolutions Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 13, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Rajon Rondo (9) leaves the court after losing to the Utah Jazz 109-92 at EnergySolutions Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mar 22, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Rajon Rondo (left) talks with head coach Rick Carlisle in the fourth quarter against the Phoenix Suns at US Airways Center. The Suns defeated the Mavericks 98-92. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

Attitude Adjustment

Tolerance in the NBA is a funny thing. I’m not talking about racial tolerance or anything of that magnitude, but tolerance of individuals with cold personalities is definitely a real issue like it is in any work place.

You don’t care what latest problem Passive-aggressive-notemaker McGee is now hounding you about as long as she gets those TPS Reports done on time, right? Same thing in the NBA. If a player is standoffish or has a confrontational personality, NBA teammates and coaches will tolerate them as long as it leads to success (Exhibit A-Z: Kobe Bryant).

Rajon Rondo is of the same mold as Kobe Bryant: a hyper competitive individual that has no interest in making friends – only winning. Only Bryant has had a careers-worth of success winning five championships and becoming one of the greatest scorers of all-time, while Rondo won a championship being the (debatably) fourth-best player on a veteran/stacked Boston Celtics team.

The kind of success that Bryant has had buys him a lot of leeway with how can approach teammates because it has worked in the past. Rondo, on the other hand, has lost any sort of credibility on a veteran team in the Dallas Mavericks, which has alienated him from the rest of the team.

He would get into public confrontations with Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle during games, resulting a suspension. The style of play that Carlisle expected from Rondo did not play to his strengths further frustrating him.

Two games into the NBA Playoffs, Rondo was ruled out for the rest of the season because of an “injured back.” More than likely, his inability to perform and a report that stated that if Carlisle was the Mavericks head coach, Rondo would not be returning were the “injuries” he sustained that would keep him out for the remainder of the year.

With Rondo struggling to produce anything positive on the basketball court, teammates and coaches have little patience with him and his prickly personality. His inability to adjust the way he approaches people played a vital role in people being far more reluctant to give his talent a chance to shine, a move that will cost him millions in free agency.

Next: Five NBA Coaches on the Hot Seat

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