This topic is an ongoing battle that I will never understand and, with each argument I hear, I develop more of an opinion on the subject. If you are the person who believes that championships are everything and nothing else matters, please stop reading. Over the past three years I have heard every homer, sophisticate, guru, snob and analyst praise this athlete as if he's the reason for his team's success. I have watched this athlete perform over the past five seasons and I continue to scratch my head wondering what he does to warrant such high regard. If you've known me all of ten minutes you know exactly the direction this post is going. The most overrated player in sports is Rajon Rondo.
Whenever Rajon Rondo is the topic of discussion everyone defending him will state that he's a "true" point guard. That asterisk shows why he is not elite and is overrated because the word "true" negates all the things he does poorly. I don't know many elite players that cannot perform necessary tasks. I understand he is a work horse and does all the things asked of him by his coach and organization but that describes a role player, not an elite star. Top point guards in this prestigious league don’t fit a system, they are the system. They are functioning at a higher level with a degree of difficulty that trumps Rajon Rondo. Do we ever say a kid at Northwestern Missouri Valley State Community College with a 4.0 GPA is more accomplished than a 3.0 student at Harvard? I’ll answer, absolutely not.
In many cases Point Guards can be known as the Quarterback of the team. The descriptions of the two positions nearly parallel each other. Both occupations run, control and orchestrate their respective offensives based on ability, system and coaching style. Trent Dilfer will never be the Quarterback Dan Marino was at any point in his career. No disrespect to Trent Dilfer, who has a Super Bowl ring, but he himself will tell you he doesn’t compare to some of the Quarterbacks that have never won the big one. Trent Dilfer’s game was to manage, control tempo, minimize mistakes, hand the ball off and make life easier for one of the best defensives to ever grace the football field with their presence. That’s Rajon Rondo’s game. Manage the flow of the game, play aggressive, make few mistakes and get the ball into the hands of the three Hall of Famers around him. His specific job description fits his skill set perfectly but we should not rate his success on the same level as others who is asked to do more to win consistently. Rajon Rondo is the NBA’s version of Ken Dorsey, Zack Robinson and Graham Harrell. When Ken Dorsey was the star at University of Miami he played with eighteen first round draft picks. I think I could put up a few stats and win a couple games taking snaps on that team. My point is Rondo is not asked to be the dominating force that makes his team march, but the force that keeps them in line. He’s not asked to take over the game, but to not let it take over him. Every manager in the world looks amazing when they have the best talent operating under their control. But how good they are when the talent no longer exists defines how talented they are as an individual. A test Rajon Rondo hasn’t yet been forced to take.
Don’t get me wrong, Rajon Rondo is an extremely talented athlete but my biggest problem is his ability to perform as a guard. He’s a 6’1 165 guard who shoots like he is a 7’3" center. Rondo’s abysmal fifty-six percent free throw percentage is below Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard who are two of the NBA’s worst free throw shooters, which is flat out putrid for any player. If you’ve ever seen Rajon Rondo play, he is guarded as if opponents are daring him to shoot fifteen foot jump shots. A fifteen foot jump shot should be automatic for any starting guard in the NBA. If you don’t think so refer to Chris Paul and Derrick Rose’s school for point guards clinic that took place this past weekend. I have watched guys over the past few years that were never jump shooters develop an effective jump shot, but not Rondo. It’s as if his skill and fundamentals have not progressed since the big three was assembled in 2007. I hear a lot of comparisons between Rajon Rondo, Gary Payton and Jason Kidd, which is just plain laughable. Jason Kidd is third all-time in three point field goals made and second in total assists. Gary Payton is a top thirty scorer of all-time with more points than Larry Bird. You cannot be elite at the professional level without having the tools to produce the single deciding factor between winning and losing, points. That’s like praising an NFL Quarterback for being excellent at handing the ball off all season. Can you name a worse shooting point guard in NBA History? I won't hold my breath.
This whole blog stems from people using the word elite when referencing Rajon Rondo. I would consider elite to be top 3 in every position. Derrick Rose, Deron Williams, Chris Paul. If you think it’s arguable, you obviously don't watch basketball. Those three elite point guards are their team, not a piece to the puzzle. They are the heart and brain and without them their team has no chance to even be competitive, forget about winning. Derrick Rose had to score 39 points and record 6 assists to limp by a less than mediocre Indiana Pacers team in Game 1. Chris Paul had to have a near perfect game with 33 points and 14 assists to outlast the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in their first playoff game. I have seen countless nights where Rondo records 4 points contributes 7 assists and the Celtics win soundly. They could get Bobby Frasor to that. I'll even give you two better, Steve Nash and Russell Westbrook.
I listened to an argument of top twenty players in the NBA hosted by Colin Cowherd. All the people arguing anointed Rajon Rondo as prince of the elite. This is where I have to draw the line. The guy who got cut from the USA Dream B-Team? Where he was beat out by Eric Gordon and Stephen Curry. He most certainly is not a top twenty player in the NBA. I'll even play the game. Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Dwight Howard, Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Love, Pau Gasol, Zach Randolph, LaMarcus Aldridge, Monta Ellis, Derrick Rose, Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Deron Williams, Steve Nash, Russell Westbrook, Paul Pierce. I know people want to say Steve Nash is not better than Rajon Rondo in 2011. Steve Nash averaged more points and more assists in 2011 and is statistically the best shooter of all-time. I think Steve Nash gets the nod. Rajon Rondo is a glorified role player who is, at the moment, the third or fourth best player on his team. Rajon Rondo is not elite by anyone’s standards.
John Hollinger has developed an all-in-one basketball player efficiency rating that accounts for positive accomplishments such as field goals, free throws, 3-pointers, assists, rebounds, blocks and steals, and negative ones such as missed shots and turnovers. Unlike Quarterback rating (the most overrated stat in football) the best player to ever play the game is at the top of the all-time list, Michael Jordan. Rajon Rondo is currently hanging out in the 70th most efficient player range this season behind players like Devin Harris, Earl Boykins and Ty Lawson. You can’t be elite in any industry being the 70th most efficient anything. For all those who think it’s a quack stat, the top six most efficient players currently according to Hollinger’s PER statistic in the NBA are LeBron James, Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant, Dwayne Wade, Kevin Love and Chris Paul.
I’m sorry, I may be biased against Rajon Rondo but his praise is not warranted. "Elite" should be a relatively small group that is dominant within a larger one, having a privileged status perceived as being envied by others of a lower line of order. Do other effective point guards in the NBA envy Rajon Rondo? Maybe his Championship or the four Hall of Famers he plays with, but not his skill set.
-Jae Pierce
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