Comments on: Rajon Rondo is Team USA's final cut, but why?

By: Rajon Rondo Has No Interest In Playing For Team USA : We All Scheme.com

Rajon Rondo Has No Interest In Playing For Team USA : We All Scheme.com — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 15:36:19 +0000

[...] Garnett, and Ray Allen won’t be making Team USA). Back in 2010, Rondo was on the team but different reports surfaced stating that he left due to a family issue, and the other that he was simply cut from the team [...]

By: wise man say....

wise man say.... — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 07:38:16 +0000

RONDO!!! What a cool name to yell out! regardless of how you feel about him as a player he has a really cool name to yell! By the way, he looks like where’s Waldo. Anyways… on to basketball things. Rondo is a VERY GOOD basketball player. One of the top NBA point guards in the league. BUT the league is absolutely saturated with skill and athleticism at the position. The decision was simple, WESTBROOK and rose are faster and a better fit for the pg position/style of play that this team needs. WESTBROOK’S defense and rebounding are better, This is not debatable… watch them both play. With that being said Rondo is not far behind. Additionally WESTBROOK plays with DURANT in OKC and was with LOVE at UCLA. CURRY and GORDON are obciously better shooters (needed in FIBA). GORDON is one hell of an on the ball defender and as good if not better than rondo, once again… not debatable, watch them both play. And i don’t mean watch the sports center replays… haha if you don’t know what i mean by that i’m not talking to you anyways.
When putting together a team that will only play together a few weeks before the world competition and will have to adapt to a different style of play you have to look at what each player brings to the table and how it fits into the coach’s scheme or vision. Rondo brings a lot. But every guard on that teams brings what Rajon brings but they are more skilled or are faster. Rajon simply does not fit as cohesively with this team as coach k or celtics fans would have liked.
More specifically coach k has always looked for skill players over athletes, and has tried to find the skilled athletes. Now that he has the pick of the litter and SOOOO many choices at point guard he simply doesn’t think Rajon’s skill sets him apart from the rest of the pack. The parts of his game that do set him apart are his absent jump/set shooting, his free throw percentage, and his sometimes errant turnovers. Not to say that Rajon couldn’t be successful in interationaly play or with this USA team, i’m just saying he wasn’t the right fit this time around.
Good luck in for the olympics though…. i doubt when the rest of the point guards come back there will be enough room for him either. But maybe… he needs to start with 1000′s of jumpers every day over the summer/offseason like MJ or KOBE. greatness is not natural, it is earned.

By: Da Cuse

Da Cuse — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 14:36:57 +0000

If you watched the finals, NBA basketball in generally, knows that both teams benefitted from suspect calls, that varied from game to game. The NBA rewards aggressiveness which is why Shaq for years has gotten away with bullying people. Lebron get away with the same garbage. For all the talk that Fisher flops for the Lakers, no one ever mentions that Paul Pierce’s picture should be in Wikipedia for all the flopping he does, even when he is shooting.
Rondo is a good rebounder and defensively player but his absence from this team is because he can’t SHOOT. He is strictly a driver. Thank you Rondo for QUITTING.

By: torondo

torondo — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 14:37:13 +0000

rondo is good, but for international play he’s gonna be a liability.
phil jackson put kobe on rondo not because he needs a better defender for rondo but to prevent kobe guarding ray allen. ray allen runs around the court from screen after screen and the lakers can’t afford to let bryant chase allen and tire himself out. that’s why fisher was on allen, and kobe on rondo.

By: Walter

Walter — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 10:46:29 +0000

The reason Rondo is not on the team is definitely not a good one and we may never really know what it was. Personal issues is my guess.

By: danh

danh — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 21:23:37 +0000

you have got to be the biggest idiot ever. did you say darren williams and chris paul are shoot first point guards? what just because they actually CAN shoot unlike rondo? those two pass just as good if not better then rondo and they have less options whereas rondo had the big 3. those two pg’s turn nobodys into allstar level players. do you know how much better tyson chandler and emeka okafor are when they play with chris paul? did you even know about carlos boozer before darren williams? and rondo is a great perimeter defender and everything but you’re neglecting the fact that chris paul was injured last seeason. and prior to that season HE was the steals leader. darren williams is good defender nonetheless, not as good as rondo, BUT he has the athleticism and strength that rondo lacks which is huge when it comes to how physical international basketball players play. so i see him deal with the pushing and shoving a whole lot better then rondo does. ON TOP OF THAT did we forget to mention that these two can freaking shoot?!and what’s this about all those superstars being on the team..? that was the redeem team. this years team has none of those players except rose durant and gay you moron.

By: tallman

tallman — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 21:20:24 +0000

Rondo is way better than some of the players that they picked for this team even if he does not shoot the ball well from the outside. Besides I though that defense wins Championships, that is what every coach preaches!!!

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 16:31:47 +0000

I guess you were trying to say the whole must be greater than the sum of the parts.

By: leo

leo — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:26:11 +0000

STREET BELONGS IN THE STREET, NOT ON THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE. gET IT STRAIGHT HE CAN NOT SHOOT. tHAT WEAKNESS LEADS TO A CASCADE OF PROLEMS, NUMBER ONE OF WHICH IS PACKING THE ZONE DOWN. PACKING THE ZONE HINDERS DURANT SCORING, WHICH CONDEMNS TEAM USA TEAM TO FAILURE. I REALIZE YOU ARE FROM KY. AND THEREFORE BELIEVE RUPP AND HIS CORRUPT SUCCESSORS ARE ALL KNOWING. THEY ARE NOT. COACH K HAS FORGOTTEN MORE THEN YOU KNOW, ESPECIALLY ABOUT BUILDING AN ORGANICALLY SOUND TEAM OF PLAYERS WHO COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER AND PLAY AS A UNIT.

By: tess

tess — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 14:18:00 +0000

what you don’t know about basketball would fill the pacific ocean. Rondo is a figment of the imagination of those who refuse to believe the international game requires stronger fundamental skill then does the nba game. Number one fundamental, the ability to shoot. Rondo can’t. So he does not belong. Calling names is a poor excuse for intellectual debate

By: Here it is.....

Here it is..... — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:48:05 +0000

I blame LeBron James. He is a dick and he is the source of all evil in the world. From now on, anything that happens that someone doesn’t like is LeBron’s fault, dickhead that he is.

By: You are all dumb

You are all dumb — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:37:45 +0000

Westbrook is not a ‘shooter’ (41%, 22% from 3). Gordon is a ‘streaky’ shooter. Rondo is the BEST rebounder of all the guards, which INCIDENTALLY is what the team needs the MOST (not shooters-Durant, AI, Billups, Curry, etc). Rebounding is what this team needs the most. Defense is second.
Coach K isn’t infallable as anyone knows (including himself, remember he thought Curry wasn’t gonna be any good AT ALL)…

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 11:40:28 +0000

Roland, If you are talking about game 7, especially in the last quarter of the game, the C’s ran out of gas and started to resort to silly fouls, plain and simple. Your Boy Rondo fouled Lamar Odom and the refs would just let them play. Paul Pierce, high five Kobe on the elbow and fouled Kobe when He drove the lane and went for a dunk. Your boy Wallace couldn’t get out of the restricted zone fast enough and Kobe made him pay for it, thus going to the free throw line. Garnet had enough of Gasol and started fouling in the last minutes of the game. Check the tape, even the announcer were saying “that’s a foul!” Kobe had a horrible game, missed a lot of shots, BUT guess what, your Boy Garnet got out rebounded by Kobe by a margin of 14 to 3. That’s were you lost the game! Bottom Line: We got Artest for a reason. AND HE shot down pierce! that’s all you need to know why the Lakers are the Champions! But let’s talk about Rondo, Look no one is denying that Rondo is a good player! brings a lot to the table. But the bottom line, he got cut by coach K, who knows a lot about the game of BASKETBALL than all of us! won many times! and there’s no other conclusion why Rondo was let go other than the fact that Rondo can’t make wide open shots 10 to 12 feet away from the basket and his negative attitude doesn’t help either.

By: Paul in KY

Paul in KY — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 10:09:30 +0000

Personally, I don’t think Coach K likes guys with alot of ‘street’ in their game (as Mr. Rondo has in abundance). Add in that he’s from UK & that combined to be the kiss of death, IMO.

By: roland

roland — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 09:02:52 +0000

sal did you watch the finals?if it wasnt for the refs and there phantom calls lakers would have never won that was the worse i had ever seen lakers ought to go n kiss the refs ass thats the only reason they won period

By: dave

dave — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:54:55 +0000

look they took rondo to the beach 15 foot from the water and told him to shoot the ball into the water, well it landed 3 foot short in the sand. face it boston hicks, rondo can’t shoot

By: john

john — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:53:09 +0000

Hondo would have to sit a lot so they could see he wouldn’t take it well. it was best for the team and him to leave. ego has been to inflated by nba and celtics homers.

By: Reggie

Reggie — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 08:40:16 +0000

Well said!!! Since when is shotting more important then winning!!! He has what it takes to win.

By: jay arge

jay arge — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 01:45:25 +0000

shut up!!!!Rondo cant even shoot!

By: Punk of Dunk

Punk of Dunk — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 23:05:15 +0000

I hope everything is cool between Rondo and Team USA. Yes, Rondo has a great game that is suited for the NBA and pick up games in the states. He creates a great deal of offense from his Defense. But the international game is slower, longer possessions, not as many high risk or hurried possessions as the NBA. Thus, Rondo’s defensive effect on the game is minimized. On the offensive end of the court you don’t necessarily have to guard him, which is troublesome since Team USA will see mostly zone. Teams will be able to pack the key and play the passing lanes and make us look inept. One way we can lose is if we don’t have “zone busters” that force the opposition to go “man to man”. If we can force teams to play man to man then we already possess the talent to exploit their personnel. On any given night you don’t know who is going to be hot. I’d hate for the hot hand to be sitting on a couch back here in the States.

By: orly

orly — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 22:52:39 +0000

why rondo.? us team need a enforcer a defender. rondo fit to that why oh why.have an excellent court vision.

By: Hoops McCann

Hoops McCann — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 22:37:58 +0000

…as is his wont, (not want)

By: happyjack59

happyjack59 — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 22:27:58 +0000

Unlike the NBA, international ball is truly a team game. Rondo works well in a system designed to showcase individual talent on the team. He makes great, sometimes brilliant, passes, and goes to the hoop well when a defender is more worried about the possible receiver of a pass than Rondo. I-ball isn’t like that. There will be times that an individual will use his talent to score, but coach K wants guys to work as a team to score the majority of the points. A point guard has to take most open shots inside 12 feet. That’s not Rondo’s game. A golf analogy would be, “horses for courses”. He’s not an I-ball horse. Having said all that, he could be my point on any NBA team.

By: DC

DC — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 21:54:47 +0000

Why would you keep Eric Gordon over Rondo? Gordon has never been a great shooter and has trouble playing the point.

By: Wojo the Shooter, Turner the Driver

Wojo the Shooter, Turner the Driver — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 21:50:58 +0000

Let’s see. 1998 Duke versus UK. Coach K has Wojo better shooting point guard. Wayne Turner drives on him relentlessly. Turner has awful looking shot and freethrow style. Coach K runs out of timeouts. You need someone to pass to the superstars. There won’t be enough basketballs. You need some role players to play defense and rebound and do the dirty work. To be good at basketball you need speed under control.

By: Terrance

Terrance — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 21:35:29 +0000

Solid mid range game? like free throw range? that he can’t shoot to save his life. haha come on rondo didn’t deserve to make the team. You need shooters in FIBA play

By: Aussie Phil

Aussie Phil — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 21:26:24 +0000

Hey Joe, I think this is a telling insight. It is very late in the selection process for the US coaches to be talking about team deficiencies. I thought the US had the best basketball system in the world? I realise that a lot of top tier players have opted out (interesting in itself, given the average record of US teams over the past decade), but surely it wouldn’t be that hard to pick a team with balance: size, shooting, defence etc.
Does not augur well for medal chances in September!

By: mike

mike — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 21:22:41 +0000

it looks like this team needs to schedule a practice with the players not on the team such as Kobe, Paul, Wade, etc.

By: elvis

elvis — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 20:54:58 +0000

not to knock the kid. He is good, but pales next to the players kept. Simple fact he can’t throw a brick in the ocean. Great players have to be able to shoot. If you can not you are not very good. A guard who can’t shoot allows the defense to collapse, therby hindering the inside game.Greats like Robertson, West, Monroe, Wilkens, and Curry stretch the floor. To win this team needs to create space for Durant and Odom. It is unfortunate that todays standards are so low.And memories so short. Rondo is an average player, limited in abilty and poorly suited for an international game largely strong in fundamentals

By: Joe B

Joe B — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 20:46:08 +0000

If they cut him because they wanted shooters, why did they invite him in the first place? Does not make any sense.