Five struggling NBA players we shouldn’t give up on

3. Rajon Rondo

At one point in time, young Rajon Rondo improbably made the Celtics “Big Three” a Big Four when he became an All-Star player next to Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce. In 2010, he earned the first of four straight All-Star nods and ended up leading the NBA in steals, earning the second of four All-Defensive team selections. He led the league in assists during the 2011-2012 season and opened the 2012-2013 season strong; recording double digit assists in each of the first 24 games. Though he eventually repeated as league leader that season, it was the start of the downfall of Rajon Rondo.

He tore his ACL in January of that season and battled back to return nearly a year later and record three triple-doubles for the Celtics during the second half of the season. But clashes with ownership and coach Doc Rivers led to the Celtics parting way with Rondo in late 2014, trading him along with Dwight Powell to the Mavericks for Jae Crowder, Jameer Nelson, Brandan Wright, and the picks that eventually became Terry Rozier and Demetrius Jackson. Once in Dallas, Rondo clashed with head coach Rick Carlisle frequently and earned a suspension for conduct detrimental to the team. He played poorly and disappointed overall in his Mavericks stint before eventually leaving following a first round exit.

Rajon Rondo signed a one year deal with the Sacramento Kings before last year. Though he posted a career high three point field goal percentage of 36.5 percent and led the NBA in assists for the third time, Rondo’s league reputation did not recover well with the hapless Kings. His critics accuse him of chasing assists with the Kings. Rajon Rondo is now 30 years old, has developed reputation as an un-coachable player, and arguably hasn’t been good since he tore his ACL in 2013. His value has plummeted and he had few suitors in the offseason. He signed a two-year, $28 million deal with the Chicago Bulls with a mutual option for year two — likely a one-year deal. His signing was met with a lot of skepticism that he can play effectively next to Jimmy Butler and Dwayne Wade and repair his NBA value, though Rajon Rondo appears to be out to prove those people wrong.

Why you should still believe:

At 30 years old, there should theoretically be two or three peak years left in Rajon Rondo’s career. It’s likely that he will either outplay his current contract and opt out or the reverse will happen and the Bulls opt out themselves after this year. If this turn with the Bulls doesn’t go well then Rondo may not ever get the chance to be a starting point guard again. He should be motivated to earn one final big contract and do anything he can to help repair his reputation and help the Bulls win.

So far reports of Rondo’s leadership have been great.  Coach Fred Hoiberg is on record saying he thinks he will thrive in the Bulls system, and there are a lot of scorers to feed the ball to in Chicago. If tuned in, he can still be a good defensive player and the strides he’s made as a shooter make him more of a balanced threat on offense. We may also never see an All-Star Rajon Rondo again, but he should have a bounce back year with the Bulls and remind the NBA of how good he can be when dialed in.