The marriage between the Chicago Bulls and point guard Rajon Rondo isn’t off to the best start.
Rondo has been benched recently and suspended for conduct detrimental to the team as the rift between he and the coaching staff seems to grow by the day.
The embattled guard has now gone public, telling ESPN.com’s Nick Friedell he’d welcome a trade if the coaching staff doesn’t plan to use him:
Rondo acknowledged that if the Bulls continue to keep him on the bench, he will speak to management about trying to find a new team.
“Absolutely,” he said.
It’s important to note none of this has a negative stigma attached to it. Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg has praised how Rondo has supported the players from the bench and the above quote isn’t exactly a major controversy.
The playing time issue seems to be the result of different ideals between player and coach:
“[Hoiberg] told me that I’ve been looking slow the last five games,” Rondo said. “He asks me all the time, ‘Am I healthy?’ I responded, saying that I think this is the best I’ve ever felt this part of the season, so we’ll see how it goes.”
If the Bulls don’t work this out with Rondo, he’s not going to have the most attractive trade value. He had a strong season in Sacramento last year averaging 11.9 points and 11.7 assists, but he’s 30 years old and fizzling out with a team after half a season isn’t a great look.
Keep a close eye on the situation given the implications it could have on the Eastern Conference playoff picture.
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