Danny Ainge, despite another wave of Rajon Rondo trade speculation, said this afternoon that he expects the all-star point guard to still be a Celtic following the March 15 trade deadline.
You never say never where Ainge’s willingness to make the right trade is concerned - especially in the case of a valuable asset like Rondo - but he is downplaying that possibility now.
“I anticipate him being here for a long time,” the Celtics president said when asked about Rondo’s immediate future.
Ainge went on to say that Rondo and Doc Rivers’ relationship is better now than it has ever been, and that the last time he was actively engaged in a trade rumor that involved Rondo was when Chris Paul may have been available last summer.
The 26-year old Rondo is around a decade than Boston’s “Big Three,” and it’s natural to assume that the Celtics’ post “Big Three” team will be built around Rondo, but the All-Star point guard’s play and behavior have been somewhat erratic this season. In any case, Ainge says he “doesn’t anticipate anything happening” with Rondo right now -- we’ll see if that holds true over the next two weeks.
