Rajon Rondo‘s return to form has been one of the more pleasant surprises of the young season so far. It’s especially pleasant (and surprising) given the way things unraveled in Dallas toward the end of last season. He and Mavs coach Rick Carlisle had their well-documented disagreements during their brief tenure together, which included Rondo assuming executive decision-making responsibilities while ignoring Carlisle’s play-calling, the two screaming and cursing at each other on the sidelines during a timeout, and Rondo ultimately giving up on his team during their short and ill-fated postseason run.
Despite it all, there doesn’t seem to be any sour grapes, at least for Carlisle. Both parties have since moved on, and obviously for the better. Dallas has found itself hovering around the four spot in the Western Conference standings, and Rondo is putting up numbers again like it was the 2008-2010 playoffs. Carlisle has certainly taken notice, and on Sunday he offered high praise for the point guard he clashed with so spectacularly last year. Via Tim Cato of Mavs Moneyball
“He’s a max player next year. Someone’s going to have to back up the truck to get him.”
Although it’s difficult to imagine Rondo earning a max contract next summer, it seems clear that he’s on a mission to parlay a bounce-back season with the Kings into a more secure long-term contract in 2016, whether that be in Sacramento or elsewhere.
(H/T CBS Sports)
