Former Sacramento Kings, Boston Celtics and Kentucky Wildcats point guard Rajon Rondo is coming to the Chicago Bulls. Multiple outlets are reporting that the Bulls have agreed to a two-year deal with Rondo, who led the league in assists this season at 11.7 per game. The second year of the contract is only partially guaranteed, and the total deal is worth $30 million; according to some outlets.
Other outlets are reporting Rondo’s deal to be worth $28 million. His salary is only a minor uncertainty; that’s microlevel.
The major uncertainty is the direction the Bulls are going. GM Gar Forman keeps saying that the roster is being retooled, not rebuilt. Although that just sounds like press conferencespeak, it might actually be true now in wake of this deal.
Are the Bulls really blowing this thing up? Doesn’t really appear that way. Are they going “all in” for a “win now” mode?
Can’t really say that either. If this was 2013 Rajon Rondo, one of the best point guards alive at that time, coming to Chicago then you could say the Bulls are going all in. This Rondo doesn’t even fit with the system that Fred Hoiberg likes to run. It was hard to decipher what lane the Bulls were choosing with the Derrick Rose trade. It’s the same feeling here with this deal.
All we know for sure is that the Bulls are seriously undergoing a major roster reshaping. Whether they’re moving towards “blowing it up” or “really building something for the future” is in the eye of the beholder. All we know now is that more changes are coming. With this deal, E’Twaun Moore’s future could be in doubt. Joakim Noah is gone and Pau Gasol is next.
The Rajon Rondo acquisition is a bit of head-scratcher. The Bulls did obviously need an upgrade at point guard, and a clear answer to “who will start at the 1 now that Rose is gone?” So this signing accomplishes that much.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes regularly to the Chicago Tribune’s RedEye publication.
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