5 trade destinations for Rajon Rondo

For the small ball era to actually work in Indianapolis, the Indiana Pacers are going to need to upgrade their play at point guard from veteran George Hill. Hill is turnover prone and the Pacers need a point guard that can its wing scorers the basketball to make outside shots.

One player that the Pacers could ask about is Rondo. Rondo won’t play any defense for head coach Frank Vogel or shoot the basketball all that well for a mediocre offense to begin with, but he could end up being the player that could open up the floor for Paul George and company to adequately operate.

The Pacers already have two great scorers in George and Rondo’s former teammate while with the Dallas Mavericks in shooting guard Monta Ellis. Having a point guard that can average well over 10 assists a game, rebound, and contend for the occasional triple-double might have Larry Bird and Vogel’s interest.

While Rondo is a great basketball mind, there is the strong possibility that he would butt heads with Vogel when asked to play better on ball defense for the Pacers. It could prove as explosive as was Rondo’s time in Dallas playing for head coach Rick Carlisle.

However, given that Rondo is tremendously gifted in distributing the basketball and could help the Pacers get the most out George and Ellis offensively, Vogel may let some of Rondo’s defensive lapses slide, as Vogel’s Pacers would become a more well-rounded team with Rondo. Maybe this trade with the Kings would elevate the Pacers’ ceiling to that of being a team that could sneak into the Eastern Conference Finals for the third time in four NBA seasons?

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