---

Since the late-December trade for Rajon Rondo, the Mavericks experiment with the embattled point guard has been anything, but a smooth ride. He hasn’t quite fit into Rick Carlisle’s offense and the roller coaster ride finally reached a tipping point on Tuesday night in a heated exchange between Rondo and Carlise. The Dallas Mavericks announced they have suspended the point guard for one game for conduct detrimental to the team. So, is it time to declare the trade a complete failure? We discuss in a Mavs Fanatic Roundtable.

---

Should the Mavs have suspended Rondo?

Greg Higgins: If all that happened was on the court, no. However, now that reports are coming out about another altercation in the locker room after the game, then yes. Carlisle said it was over in his mind and I feel he meant that. He probably looked at that as two guys in the heat of the moment. If more happened, though, that’s a different ball game.

 

Terence Huie:  No. We’ve seen players and coaches get into these confrontations plenty of times. I think Rondo and Carlisle have similar characteristics (At least that’s how I’ve saw it). Both guys love the game of basketball and if they have an issue, they aren’t afraid to express their emotions. With the suspension though, this is definitely something deeper than just a coach and player jawing at each other.

 

Damian Jackson: If he indeed was guilty of conduct detrimental to the team, yes. Lingering issues clearly boiled over during last night’s game and I assume a trickle effect carried into today which led to the correct decision on suspension.

 

Michael Lark: Yes. We don’t know exactly what was said in the heated exchange between Carlisle and Rondo, but it appears it was enough to send Rondo home to Dallas when the Mavs could really use his services, especially on the second night of a back-to-back. The Mavs are clearly trying to send a message to Rondo, and the rest of the team for that matter.

 

 

Is Rajon Rondo a fit in the Mavs system?

Higgins: I think so. Jason Kidd struggled a little in his return to Dallas while playing for Carlisle. Rondo is a great talent and he can be a huge asset. The question should be, “can he put aside his pride and allow Carlisle to coach him?” Carlisle can do amazing things with players on the court so I think this can work. That is if both parties want it to.

 

Huie: I think fits in a little better for defensive purposes rather than on offense. Since the Rondo trade, the Mavs rank currently seventh-best (third-best in the Western Conference) in the NBA in defensive efficiency. For a team that isn’t known to be good defensively, that’s pretty impressive.

 

Jackson: No. Not at all. Yes, the Mavericks team defensive numbers have improved since the acquisition, but it surely feels as if Dallas actually plays better when Rondo sits or was out those six games and change. As Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas stated, Rondo’s inability to shoot in the Mavs’ flow offense has put a major wrench in the production on that end.

 

Lark: Defensively, yes. Offensively, no. Ideally, the Mavs needed a player with Chris Paul’s offensive and Rajon Rondo’s defensive skill set, but apparently they don’t sell those on eBay. Rondo, still makes this team much better defensively, but a move to the Western Conference has severely exposed his offensive inefficiencies.

 

 

Did the Mavs pull the trigger too early when they traded for Rondo, two months ahead of the NBA trade deadline?

Higgins: Hindsight is 20/20, right? I’m going to say no. They had to do something. Jameer Nelson wasn’t cutting it and they were obviously really weak in the point guard position. Rondo became available and the Mavs jumped on it. If they had waited and another western conference team jumped on it, we would be yelling and screaming about the Mavs not doing anything when he was available; especially since we desperately needed an upgrade at that position.

 

Huie: I hate to say this, but the Mavs jumped the gun on the Rondo trade. Given those insane trades that occurred on the trade deadline, there could’ve been endless possibilities for new acquisitions if the Mavs kept their assets (keeping Jae Crowder, Jameer Nelson, and Brandan Wright).

 

Jackson: It looks that way now with several talented point guards moving at the deadline. Rondo was a deal the Mavericks felt could push them over the top and it still remains to be seen. The best Rondo comes out during the playoffs and that will have the ultimate say, but guys like Goran Dragic, Brandon Knight and Michael Carter-Williams make you cringe at the thought of what maybe could have been.

 

Lark: They say hindsight is 20/20, so had the Mavericks been able to prophesized the future, of course they would have waited until the NBA trade deadline to pull off a deal for a point guard. You can’t question the fact they needed to pull off such a deal, but they also had no idea that there was going to be a huge fire sale for the likes of Goran Dragic and Brandon Knight. The Mavs still managed their assets well and have a team better than they did before the trade.

 

 

What are the chances the Mavs bring back Rondo next season?

Higgins: Before last night/today I thought the chances were a lot higher. Now, though, I’m wondering if he wants to be back in Dallas, so I’ll say 35%.

 

Huie: It all depends on how the Mavs finish in the postseason and Carlisle’s relationship with his starting point guard. If the Mavs move deep into the playoffs and that relationship heals, Rondo’s chances of returning to me is 75%. The other 15% tells me that Rondo travels to Los Angeles and play alongside Kobe Bryant.

 

Jackson: 25 percent. The reason I even go that high is because the Rondo market will not be huge. His play in this year’s postseason may possibly alter the Mavs desire to bring him back, but I don’t see Dallas willing to meet his asking price based on his square in a circle fit here.

 

Lark: 30%. For all the improvement that Rondo has given the Mavs defensively so far this season, he simply does not seem to be a good long-term fit. The Mavs have a core of ball dominating players in Parsons and Monta that the team will try and build around rather than trying to rebuild around Rondo. With other big names such as Dragic, Knight and Reggie Jackson set to hit the free agent market, the Mavs can have their pick at a better match.