NBA Trade Rumors: Why the Knicks should trade Tyson Chandler for Rajon Rondo
Imagine if there ever was a good trade, a trade that could help two teams, improve the Eastern Conference and be loved by the NBA as well.
That trade would center around Boston Celtics’ point guard Rajon Rondo for New York Knicks’ center Tyson Chandler.
Jan 16, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; New York Knicks center Tyson Chandler (6) wants a foul called against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana defeats New York 117- 89. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
According to the New York Daily News, GM’s throughout the NBA, think Boston will trade Rondo by the trade deadline. Rondo will not be happy surrounded by rookies with a rookie coach Brad Stevens, so look for Boston to try to move him. NY Daily news thought Boston may move him to the West, with Phoenix and Houston seen as two potential destinations.
New York would be a better destination.
Steve Mills, get on the phone, make your mark, and make a deal that New York will love. One that Boston fans will also embrace.
Let’s face the facts, Rondo probably isn’t going to accept a role in a rebuilding situation. He plays better when surrounded by stars. He made Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett better players. Now he can help Carmelo Anthony and Anthony will get the player he has lobbied for.
So it makes sense for Danny Ainge to move him. Ainge has been interested in Houston’s Omar Asik, why not Tyson Chandler?
Imagine the rivalry now, the intensity of the games between these two great cities.
Rondo has one more season to go on his contract, at $13 million, which works for an exit strategy for the 2015 Knicks if they so desire. Rondo is still viewed by most NBA executives as a top-five point guard. He returned to action on Friday against the Los Angeles Lakers and now needs to show he’s fully recovered from his torn ACL surgery.
Now some believe he is difficult to coach and Stevens will not be able to control him. Yes, he had some infamous run-ins with Doc Rivers and Ray Allen when the Celtics were winning the Eastern Conference title twice in a three-year span, but that happens with superstars.
Mike Woodson is a players’ coach. He needs someone to take over where Jason Kidd left off. He will make Woodson a better coach and they collectively are a good pair. Where Rivers was a fiery coach, Woodson father figure style will blend better with Rondo.
Rondo will energize the Garden, he will pass, score, penetrate and provide Anthony with the running mate he so desires. Rondo will make Iman Shumpert better, he will make J.R. Smith accountable. He will be the leader in the backcourt the Knicks desperately need.
For Stevens and Ainge, you have a mature gamer in Chandler, a defensive presence, a player to build a team around. To date, Ainge has hoarded draft picks, but rookies alone do not win championships.
Chandler gives Boston the captain they desperately need to compete in the East in the very near future.
So Mills do something, anything.
Will your legacy be to miss the playoffs and lose Anthony for nothing in the same year? Now is your defining moment, this trade will energize the Garden and fill up James Dolan’s new suites at Madison Square Garden.
Yes, Christmas is over, but the Chandler for Rondo trade would make for a great new year for both cities.
Dr. Eric Kaplan is a Bestselling author www.5minutemotivator.com
Follow him on Twitter @drekaplan