After refusing to give him an extension all summer the Celtics have finally agreed in principle to a 5 year, 55 million dollar deal with star point guard Rajon Rondo. Danny Ainge and the Celtics ownership were concerned that Rondo's leadership abilities were not good enough to warrant giving him big time money. However since training camp Rondo has been more active in the locker room and at practice to the point where the Celtics front office feels comfortable with Rondo as their long term point guard.
What this whole negotiation was really about was if the Celtics ownership felt comfortable with Rondo as their anchor after the big three is retired. Personally I'm not sure Rondo would be nearly as effective on his own. If he was without Garnett, Pierce, and Allen then defenses would focus on him rather than his teammates. If he was to face a double team every night then I highly doubt he would be racking up the assists the way he has in the last two years.
Last summer reports surfaced that the Celtics were shopping Rondo, citing his inability to receive coaching as the driving factor. Apparently sometimes he avoids the play and tries to take control on his own. After they realized that were not going to get sufficient value in return, both Doc Rivers and Danny Ainge emphatically denied the rumors.
