Ainge: "We'd Love To Keep Rondo In Boston"

Forsberg did a summation of this on ESPN, but this is the original article he cites in his column.


http://www.telegram.com/article/20140921/NEWS/309219633/1009/sports




Danny Ainge: Rajon Rondo not trade bait
Picture
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge speaks at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Chester Street. (T&G Staff/CHRISTINE PETERSON)

By Bill Doyle TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
william.doyle@telegram.com






Celtics president Danny Ainge, right, chats with former WCVB-Channel 5 sportscaster Mike Dowling. (T&G Staff/CHRISTINE PETERSON)



WORCESTER — Wherever Danny Ainge goes, people ask him if he's going to trade Celtics captain Rajon Rondo. Sunday night was no exception. Ainge spoke about his life on and off the court at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Chester Street and a member of the congregation asked the Celtics president of basketball operations if he plans to deal his star point guard.

Ainge used to be a Mormon bishop and now he's a high councilor of the Boston stake (region) which includes Worcester so he had to tell the truth, right?

"The truthful answer is I really don't know," Ainge insisted. "I have no intention. I'm not trying to trade Rondo, but because he's a free agent this summer, he assured me that he wants to stay in Boston. We'd love to keep him in Boston."

Ainge said he tried to negotiate a contract extension with Rondo this and last summer, but he admitted that it makes more financial sense for Rondo to not agree to a new contract until he becomes an unrestricted free agent. Rondo, 28, will receive a team-high $12.9 million this coming season in the final year of his contract.

"The possibility of a trade is not out of the question," Ainge said. "Nobody is untradeable, but I don't see that happening."

Knee surgery in February of 2013 has limited Rondo to only 68 games over the last two seasons. After Rondo returned last Jan. 17 from surgery, the Celtics were 6-24 with him in the lineup and 5-7 in the games he rested. They expect to play better with him now that he's further removed from his knee surgery.

"I love Rondo," Ainge said. "He's a fun kid to be around. I've seen a lot of growth in him as a person and maturity through the years."

Ainge was asked why he drafted Marcus Smart last June when he plays the same position as Rondo. Ainge said he picked the best player available and he's looking forward to seeing them play together and separately with Avery Bradley.

The Celtics failed to trade for Kevin Love or draft Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker. Instead they drafted Smart and James Young and acquired Marcus Thornton, Evan Turner and Tyler Zeller.

"It wasn't the fireworks that we tried," Ainge said, "and we continue to try to do, but we're excited about Marcus (Smart) and his future and James Young and his future. We need to be more patient with James, especially out of the gate. I think Marcus is more physically ready to play at our level than James is today, but we hope for fast progress from James. I felt like we acquired some assets. We didn't panic and do anything that was silly."

After being challenged by a Celtics player he didn't want to name, Ainge lost quite a bit of weight over the summer.

Ainge talked about being a high school basketball star in high school in Oregon and at BYU, his playing days with the Toronto Blue Jays, Celtics, Kings, Blazers and Suns and his coaching stint with the Suns.

The Celtics hired Ainge to run the franchise in May of 2003, but he told the congregation that he turned them down twice before finally accepting their offer. Celtics owners Wyc Grousbeck and Steve Pagliuca told Ainge that Red Auerbach had recommended him for the job. Ainge asked them what qualifications Auerbach said he possessed.

"Red said that he's the luckiest guy I know," Ainge recalled, prompting laughter in the congregation. "That was his endorsement."

Wearing a dark suit and a green tie, Ainge answered every question except one during a discussion on stage with former WCVB-Channel 5 sportscaster Mike Dowling and later from the audience of a few hundred. The question he declined to answer was whether he would have drafted Greg Oden or Kevin Durant if the Celtics had won the 2007 NBA Lottery. Ainge said he didn't want to answer with a Worcester sports writer on hand.

"I don't think our team is in contention for a championship," Ainge admitted. "We are a young team and we're in the development stages."

Ainge was most enthusiastic about second-year coach Brad Stevens.

"Our coach is spectacular," Ainge said. "He is a fierce competitor. He is a tireless worker. You hear this word thrown around a lot. I've spent a lot of time thinking about character, but he is a man of great integrity. I'm a huge, huge fan."

Ainge thinks the Celtics can make the playoffs if they play to their potential.

"It's hard for me to put goals on our team," he said. "I want to hear what they want to do. I want to hear what their goals are and what they believe they can accomplish this year."




bob
MY NOTE:  "Luck is the residue of hard work and design" - Branch Rickey.  Yeah, Danny might be the luckiest guy Red knew, but Red was pretty darn lucky too.  It wasn't the leprechaun, though, it was Red knowing what the team needed and working to draft/acquire them, and working them to where they were in elite condition and readiness.  Danny's "lucky" the same way. Btw, nice tie, Danny.


.

Watch this man closely.  Nothing up his dark sleeve.  No false bottoms (although his has apparently lost weight).  No rabbit to soil that green tie. No top hat.  And at no time do the words, "We're not going to trade Danny Ainge" leave his mouth.  If there ever were a situation in which he wouldn't shade the truth, it's in a Mormon place of worship.

Wonder who might have been the player to challenge Danny to lose weight this summer. Possibly someone who was planning to lost weight himself?  Possibly someone whose dad is a coach and knows the importance of fitness?  Possibly someone who shouldn't be shooting so many threes?  Possibly someone whose bottom would serve as a reverse role model for Danny?

Inquiring minds want to know.

Sam

Danny is a man of profound integrity, and I do believe him when he says that he wants to keep Rondo. Whatever happens, for sure Danny will do what he thinks is best for the Celtics.

I used to work as a copy boy for the Worcester Telegram and Gazette in 1964, so this story evokes happy memories. One of them revolves around sports. The headline writers were always trying to pull a fast one on the editors, trying to sneak something salacious by them to make it into print. The headline writer would then tape the published headline onto a post in the newsroom like a trophy of war. One such trophy headline was about Detroit pitcher Frank Lary, who had a great reputation as a Yankee killer. The following article from Baseball Digest explains his anti-Yankee prowess:

"Frank Lary. The Yankee-Killer. The Tigers' pitcher who, for a seven-year period from 1955-61, was the major source of delight for all Yankee-Haters. The one pitcher who had the Yankees' number. The force that Yankee-Haters could count on, as everything else failed, to prove that the Yankees were mortal."

Anyways, the headline that topped a one column article read this way:
Frank Lary
Yanks
His Meat

Boys will be boys.

Great story, Worcester.

Sam

I believe Ainge when he says he'd rather keep Rondo on the team. But that should not be construed as he absolutely will keep him or he plans on trading him. Anyone is available at the right price. And anyone can be considered a cornerstone piece moving forward.


KJ

Stumbled upon this while on Facebook.


http://www.thescore.com/nba/news/585114


Celtics GM on trading Rondo: 'Nobody is untradeable, but I don't see that happening'

Joseph Casciaro @JosephCasciaro 9:17 AM

The Celtics are in a tough spot with Rajon Rondo. They have an All-Star caliber point guard still in his prime at 28-years-old, but after failing to land another star (like Kevin Love), they also remain stuck in the early stages of a rebuilding project.

The Celtics also drafted a point guard - Marcus Smart - with the sixth pick in June's draft, and if they can turn Rondo into a package of assets that includes a couple of promising young players and draft picks, they probably should before he becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer, when he can potentially walk away with Boston getting nothing in return.

Speaking at a church on Sunday, Celtics General Manager Danny Ainge responded to Rondo-related questions.

"The truthful answer is I really don't know," Ainge said about a trade, via the Worcester Telegram & Gazette. "I have no intention. I'm not trying to trade Rondo, but because he's a free agent this summer, he assured me that he wants to stay in Boston. We'd love to keep him in Boston."

"The possibility of a trade is not out of the question," Ainge added, "Nobody is untradeable, but I don't see that happening."

Already this offseason, Rondo and his agent have had to deny reports that he requested a trade, with Celtics President Rich Gotham confirming that Rondo never made the request.

Ainge may not see a trade happening right now, but if the young Celtics struggle through another season of what the GM admits is still "the development stages," and if they become concerned Rondo will walk as a free agent, they may not have a choice.

In addition, even if Ainge was trying to move Rondo as we speak, he would never come right out and say it publicly. Rival teams would hold much of the leverage in trade negotiations if they knew the Celtics were desperate to move the point guard.

---

I've never really believed any of the "Rondo wants a trade" nonsense. It really doesn't sound like something he'd say.



KJ

KJ,

Not to be argumentative, but what is it about wanting a trade that doesn't sound like something Rondo would say?  What is there about Rondo, his personality, his mannerisms, his beliefs, or anything else that suggests he would be unlikely to say something like that to Danny either directly or through his Rajon's agent?

Sam

Just to give you an idea about the wide range of possible summations one can get in this wild, wild west of a blogosphere, here's one from RealGM.com about this article.  Compare the headline they give, vs what you glean from the original article itself.


Ainge Undecided On Celtics' Plan With Rondo
Sep 22, 2014 10:27 AM EDT


Danny Ainge is not sure what the Boston Celtics will ultimately decide to do with Rajon Rondo, who can become a free agent in 2015.

"The truthful answer is I really don't know," Ainge insisted. "I have no intention. I'm not trying to trade Rondo, but because he's a free agent this summer, he assured me that he wants to stay in Boston. We'd love to keep him in Boston."

Rondo has played in just 68 games over the past two seasons.

"The possibility of a trade is not out of the question," Ainge said. "Nobody is untradeable, but I don't see that happening."

Via Worcester Telegram




bob


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It'll be interesting to see what happens with Rondo.  For many reasons.

Sam

Casciaro says this: "turn Rondo into a package of assets that includes a couple of promising young players and draft picks..." Yeah, sure. That's just what we need for Rondo. More young players and more draft picks. What a great basketball mind. Not.

sam wrote:KJ,

Not to be argumentative, but what is it about wanting a trade that doesn't sound like something Rondo would say?  What is there about Rondo, his personality, his mannerisms, his beliefs, or anything else that suggests he would be unlikely to say something like that to Danny either directly or through his Rajon's agent?

Sam

Admittedly, I am speaking primarily from a subjective point of view. His competitive fire and his intense pride are the two primary reasons as to why I could see Rondo wanting to stick through the rebuild, as well as being drafted by Boston and winning a title, too.

But I could be wrong, too.



KJ