Rajon Rondo‘s stint with the Dallas Mavericks will go down as one of the most beautifully disastrous pairings in recent NBA memory. The fact that Rondo has thrived with the Sacramento Kings since leaving Dallas — he’s tying career numbers in assists and is back up in the double digits in points per game — only corroborates how horribly he meshed with Rick Carlisle and, well, whatever it is they were trying to do in Dallas.
There’s no love lost, either. Following Sacramento’s 133-111 win over the Mavericks — the Kings’ third win over Dallas in four games this season — Rondo didn’t mince words when it came to his former team. His message was clear: He wants the Mavs out of the playoffs. And if the Kings are going to miss the cut, as well — nearly a given considering they’re 6.5 games behind eighth place in the Western Conference with nine games remaining — he wants to take the Mavs down with them.
“Yeah, I want them to get their plane ticket as soon as we get ours,” Rondo said via ESPN.com. “So, anytime we can help, that’s what I try to get these guys [his teammates] to focus on.
“If we’re not going to make the playoffs, then let’s help some of these guys go home with us.”
There aren’t enough fire emojis on the internet for that kind of take.
Sacramento’s win dropped Dallas to 35-38, a half-game behind the Rockets for eighth place. You never want to pin one win or loss on making/not making the postseason — after all, Dallas is 2-8 in its last eight games — but if the Mavs do miss the playoffs, it’ll be easy to come back to Rondo’s comments.
Now, the only thing missing is a response from Mark Cuban.
(Via ESPN.com)
