FanPost

We all need to admit that Rondo simply isn't a good basketball player right now....

OK I was against the trade from day one - said it would kill our spacing, efficiency, bench, etc - and so far all of that has been true. But I still continue to read story after story and post after post claiming our only chance for success is to go all in with Rondo. I also still continue to see posts that claim the team is better with him on the court and finding some type of number to prove that.

So we now have a 25 game sample size to help me prove my point. Let's take a look at Rajon Rondo's advanced stats.

We will compare him to Devin Harris just for sport.

Player Efficiency Rating:

Rondo: 11.3 (remember the league average is 15)

Harris: 14.9

Total Shooting Percentage:

Rondo: .429

Harris: .540

Assist Percentage:

Rondo: .323

Harris: .213

Turnover percentage:

Rondo: 21.9

Harris: 11.7

Offensive Win Share:

Rondo: -0.7

Harris: 2.2

Defensive Win Share:

Rondo: 0.8

Harris: 1.2

Total Rebound percentage:

Rondo: 8.7

Harris: 4.8

So in summary, Harris is SIGNIFICANTLY better in every measurable except assist percentage and total rebound percentage. Regarding assist percentage, one thing no one ever seems to realize as far as Rondo's assist totals and percentage throughout his career is this - he can't shoot a basketball so he MUST pass it on offense. How many open looks are passed up due to this?

For rebounding percentage, yes he does this well - but is this worth sacrificing in every other category? Are one or two extra rebounds worth all the extra turnovers, missed shots (even free throws) we have to live with? The turnover percentage to me is especially horrible - the recent Mavericks teams just are not used to having someone this ridiculously sloppy with the ball.

The issue with fans before and after the trade is that they get caught up with terms that honestly don't translate to anything on the court when examined closely. Terms like "championship point guard". When you are the 4th best player on your team that wins a championship it is debatable as to whether or not you were a true difference maker - remember if championships are the measure of a great point guard then Derick Fischer and John Paxson are two of the best of all time. All-star games are not much more than popularity contests so basing any evaluation of a player at all by all star game appearances is also very questionable.

I post all of this not to be a hater. I post this because I care very much about the Mavericks. I still watch every game - have lived in Dallas for over 20 years and follow this team religiously. My biggest fear however is the constant excuses being made for one player that might end up causing us to do something VERY stupid which would be to attach our long term future (with a max contract) to someone by most measurements simply cannot play the game of basketball at an above average level. We are supposed to be the intelligent fans - which is why I came to this forum/blog in the first place. This was a place I thought where people actually valued advanced statistics and metrics but now all of a sudden I am told to "ignore that - Rondo is a "special player" and there is NO QUESTION the team is better with him especially the defense".

Well I question whether the team is better with him - I have since day one. After 25 games so far that question is being answered but not in the sense that we want it to be answered. Carlisle also realizes this - and has since day 1 - but has to be the company man right now which sucks for him. There is a reason there have been some late game benchings when we thought we might have a chance to come back and win a game - the team just plays better as a unit when he is not on the floor. There is a reason we tend to get off to slow starts recently...on and on. Rondo right now is a mentally weak player - I can listen to things about "basketball IQ" all day long but anyone who makes Deandre Jordan look like Rick Berry from the free throw line is mentally weak. Free throws are not physical - they are mental - ask yourself if you want someone who cannot even make a free throw leading you into complex situations.

We as a fan base have to wake up and start caring about the long term future of this franchise. I hope we can turn this around this season because I love this team. But unless Rondo can completely reverse 25 games of horrible basketball, there is NO chance of that. I hope he proves me wrong this year but regardless of what happens I just don't feel he is a good fit at PG for this team in the future.

Reader submitted. Opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of our editorial staff.