Sports Illustrated senior writer Ian Thomsen spoke with Kyle Draper and Bob Neumeier of CSNNE.com about the Celtics and the possibility that they deal Rajon Rondo this season. Thomsen believes it will be difficult for Boston to receive anything of value in return for their point guard. Thomsen said, “It all depends on Rondo or what he’s going to do, how well he’s going to play. I think he’s going to have a tremendous year looking forward to his free agency. I’m not sure how the Celtics get anything in a trade for Rondo because he wants to be a free agent and the Knicks and Lakers are going to be out there with max cap space [in the offseason]. How’s anyone going to keep him from going to one of those teams, including the Celtics?”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- The battle for the final Knicks roster spot might just come down to Travis Wear versus Travis Outlaw, Keith Schlosser of SNY.tv opines. Wear is mastering the triangle offense quicker than Outlaw, but it is Outlaw’s expiring $3MM contract that might make him more valuable to retain on the regular season roster as a possible trade chip, notes Schlosser.
- The Celtics got even smaller with the trade for Will Bynum, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes. After adding the 6’0″ Bynum, this leaves the team with eight players 6’4″ or smaller, notes Blakely. Boston still has 16 fully guaranteed contracts on the books, so more dealing is very possible, according to Blakely.
- The Knicks have a new look this season both on and off the court. The architect of this rebuild is new team president Phil Jackson, and Al Iannozzone, Mark LaMonica, and Anthony Carrozzo of Newsday take an in-depth look at all the changes that Jackson has brought to New York.