NBA Rumors: Rajon Rondo interested in Clippers

Rajon Rondo may quickly become the top free agent point guard, and a reunion with Doc Rivers may be on his mind.

After years of playoff underachievement, “Lob City” is breaking up with Chris Paul on his way to the Houston Rockets. The Los Angeles Clippers are set to keep Blake Griffin, and they got multiple players in return for Paul. That return included Patrick Beverley, but he’s not on the same level as Paul as an offensive point guard.

With a $13.4 million team option on him for next season, the Chicago Bulls made a fairly easy decision to waive Rajon Rondo on Friday. Over 69 games (42 starts) last season Rondo averaged 7.8 points, 6.7 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game, with a shooting line of .408/.376/.600. The Pelicans, Pacers, Lakers and Knicks have already been rumored to have interest in him, but Rondo seems to have turned his eye toward a possible reunion with an old coach.

As Alex Kennedy of Hoops Hype cited, Rondo has a history with Clippers head coach Doc Rivers. Rondo spent the first seven seasons of his career with the Boston Celtics, with Rivers as the head coach. He averaged a double-double per game (points and assists) in each of the final three seasons under Rivers, and Rondo has not enjoyed quite the same success or stability since. Reuniting with Rivers could be just what Rondo’s career needs to get back on track, so it’s not too surprising he has his eye on signing with the Clippers.

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With Beverley and Austin Rivers on their point guard depth chart, it’s uncertain if the Clippers will reciprocate Rondo’s interest at all. But they do, in theory, have an environment where he can succeed and the money to make a competitive multi-year offer. As the top free agent point guards get spoken for on the open market, Rondo stands to become the fallback option for a lot of teams.