Mavs Moneyball - Final: Dallas Mavericks 119, Boston Celtics 101Rick Carlisle approved.https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/50869/mmb-fav.png2015-01-03T08:00:04-06:00http://www.mavsmoneyball.com/rss/stream/72439062015-01-03T08:00:04-06:002015-01-03T08:00:04-06:00Watch Rondo score 29, hit 5 threes
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<figcaption>Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Rondo was brilliant facing the Celtics for the first time since his trade to Dallas.</p> <p>How fitting. The Celtics lost, but for Boston fans watching a rejuvenated Rajon Rondo Friday night almost single-handedly beat their team, it had to be one of the most satisfying losses in a long time.</p>
<p>Nobody ever thought Rondo would be the last one standing. He wasn't even part of the Big 3, slowly earning his way into the circle of trust by big playoff performances and even bigger flashes of brilliance. He was the team's quiet force -- rarely scoring but leaving his fingerprints all over each Paul Pierce pull-up jumper, Ray Allen 3-pointer and Kevin Garnett block.</p>
<p>In the end, Rondo was the only one left, and finally he departed in the trade to Dallas. They honored him with a standing ovation and a tribute video, and in turn, he reminded them of all the great times in Celtics history they enjoyed together. Each layup flashed back to a similar one during some key fourth quarter run, each jump shot brought memories to crucial playoff games.</p>
<p>Fittingly, though, Rondo also buried five 3-pointers. He'd never done before, not in all of his eight seasons in Boston. Maybe it was his way of showing Boston that he was in a new place, a place that would never be quite like his Celtics day, a place he needed to be to satisfy his undying desire to make his team the best. Dallas isn't Boston, nor is it trying to be for Rondo. He won't forget his home, but he's also in a new one now.</p>
https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2015/1/3/7484043/watch-rajon-rondo-highlights-boston-dallasTim Cato2015-01-02T20:49:29-06:002015-01-02T20:49:29-06:00Rondo torches Celtics, Mavs win 119-101
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<figcaption>Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The All-Star's return to Boston started with seven straight makes, including four 3-pointers as the Mavs recorded win No. 24.</p> <p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.celticsblog.com/">Boston Celtics</a> paid homage to Rajon Rondo's services for eight years <a href="http://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2015/1/2/7483453/watch-the-celtics-tribute-video-for-rajon-rondo">with a video tribute at the end of the first quarter</a> that nearly brought the All-Star point guard to tears.</p>
<p>But there was no crying involved in Rondo's first quarter, where he was 6-for-6 and made three 3-pointers in the first 12 minutes alone. Rondo finished with a season-high 29 points, made a career-high five 3-pointers and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/">Dallas Mavericks</a> cruised to a 119-101 win in Rondo's return to Boston.</p>
<p>It was Rondo's first trip to Boston since the blockbuster trade in December that sent him and rookie center <span>Dwight Powell</span> to Dallas for <span>Jae Crowder</span>, <span>Brandan Wright</span> and <span>Jameer Nelson</span>. If there were any jitters for Rondo, who won a title with the Celtics in 2008, they didn't show in the first quarter.</p>
<p>Rondo scored the Mavericks' first 10 points of the game, including making two 3-pointers. By the end of the quarter, he nearly scored as many points as the entire Celtics team combined. They finished with 17 points after a 33 percent shooting display.</p>
<p>Thankfully for the Mavericks, Rondo's offensive performance was enough early on to keep Boston in check all night. Rondo was the only Dallas starter to shoot 50 percent from the floor to go with six rebounds and five assists. <span>Dirk Nowitzki</span> had a 7-of-19 shooting night, finishing with 17 points, while <span>Monta Ellis</span> had a strong second half and ended with 22 points on 8-of-17 shooting.</p>
<p>The last time Dallas and Boston squared off on Nov. 3, Rondo was in Boston. Dallas built the lead to as big as 30 points that was cut to as little as a single point. <span>Avery Bradley</span> and <span>Jeff Green</span> were the ones who willed the Celtics back in that game, and on Friday, that was nearly the same result.</p>
<p>Dallas had a 28-point lead at one point tonight, but the Celtics cut the lead to 10 early in the fourth quarter behind a scoring frenzy from Bradley, who scored 17 points in the final stanza on 7-of-9 shooting.</p>
<p>Four starters in total scored in double figures for the Celtics, including 18 points from Green and 17 points from young big man <span>Tyler Zeller</span>.</p>
<p>But the night belonged to Rondo, who had his best offensive performance of the season as the Mavericks moved to 5-2 since the trade. And for any concerns regarding the possible decline in offensive efficiency with this Dallas team, they can be put to rest for awhile. Dallas has scored over 100 points all but one time since the trade, and that was 99 points in the win over the depleted <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/">San Antonio Spurs</a> in Rondo's debut.</p>
<p>If Rondo can get his jump shot going, this offense can still be on pace to do great things. Either this is a sign of things to come, or a complete aberration, depending on how you see it. But for a guy who has never made more than four 3-pointers in a game, that might be asking a bit much.</p>
<p>As for the three guys traded to Boston? None of them started, they combined for 11 points on 2-of-15 shooting, and Brandan Wright scored none of those points or took any of those shots.</p>
<p>Maybe the Mavs can swing a trade to get Wright back for a 2025 second-round pick.</p>
<p>But right now, Dallas is looking strong at 24-10. They head to Cleveland to take on the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.fearthesword.com/">Cavaliers</a> on Sunday, who will be without <span>LeBron James</span>, though it'll be another good test for Rondo battling <span>Kyrie Irving</span>.</p>
https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2015/1/2/7483599/mavericks-vs-celtics-rondo-goes-nuts-in-return-to-boston-dallas-winsDanny Webster2015-01-02T19:15:51-06:002015-01-02T19:15:51-06:00Watch the Celtics' tribute video for Rajon Rondo<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/XQuysLG2NU8" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe>
<div class="source source-img"><p><p>Beautifully done.</p></p></div>
https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2015/1/2/7483453/watch-the-celtics-tribute-video-for-rajon-rondoTim Cato2015-01-02T15:10:20-06:002015-01-02T15:10:20-06:00Poll: Who won the Rondo trade?
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<figcaption>Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Who won December? The Mavericks or the Celtics?</p> <p>Earlier this month, the <a href="https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Mavericks</a> swapped <span>Brandan Wright</span>, <span>Jameer Nelson</span>, and <span>Jae Crowder</span> (along with a 2015 first-round draft pick and a future second-round draft pick) for <span>Rajon Rondo</span> and <span>Dwight Powell</span>.</p>
<p>Rondo was obviously the star of that trade and has been the focus of most related discussion since, but when you consider the impact beyond this year, do you think Dallas is the clear winner of this trade? Or do you think this will benefit Boston's rebuilding plans in the long run? Tell us why in the comments!</p>
https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/articles/2015/1/2/7479423/poll-who-won-the-rondo-trade-dallas-mavericks-boston-celticsKate Crawford2015-01-02T13:23:04-06:002015-01-02T13:23:04-06:00Rajon Rondo: "I haven't played defense in a couple of years"<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/ByJayKing/status/551061764444803072">Rajon Rondo: "I haven't played defense in a couple of&nbsp;years"</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>Boston fans might be a little ticked, but he's looked great here in Dallas, especially in the last two games facing Russell Westbrook and John Wall.</p></p></div>
https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2015/1/2/7482183/rajon-rondo-i-havent-played-defense-in-a-couple-of-yearsTim Cato2015-01-02T10:08:57-06:002015-01-02T10:08:57-06:00Rondo implies re-signing in Dallas isn't a foregone conclusion<h3 class="link-title"><a rel="nofollow" href="https://twitter.com/sam_amick/status/551045568265342978">Rondo implies re-signing in Dallas isn't a foregone&nbsp;conclusion</a></h3>
<div class="description"><p><p>In talking with USA Today sports, Rajon Rondo implies that his free agency decision is still very much up in the air. It's too early to worry about this, and honestly, this sort of response is not surprising. Saying he's signing in Dallas regardless undercuts his bargaining position and he's playing basketball to make money for a living. <br><br>Right now, it's best to take this for what it is: a non-news story bound to wind everyone up.</p></p></div>
https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2015/1/2/7481219/rondo-implies-resigning-in-dallas-is-not-a-foregone-conclusionKirk Henderson2015-01-01T23:26:14-06:002015-01-01T23:26:14-06:00Preview: Rajon Rondo returns to Boston
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<figcaption>Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Dallas travels to Boston to face a struggling Celtics team, but the main story line will Rondo's return home.</p> <h4>What have the <a href="https://www.celticsblog.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Celtics</a> done lately?</h4>
<p>Life has not been kind to the Celtics recently. They've dropped four of their last five games, finally snapping a four-game losing streak with a decisive win over Sacramento on New Year's Eve. They're 11-18 for the season but currently just one game behind the <a href="https://www.hothothoops.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Heat</a> for the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, that magical place where teams with losing records and negative point differentials find themselves playing into the postseason. But you probably don't care so much about what Boston has done lately as the fact that this will be Rondo's first game in Boston as anything other than a Celtic. So...</p>
<h4>How's this trade looking for Boston?</h4>
<p>While the <a href="https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Mavericks</a> are still working out all the kinks with their latest addition, Rondo's time with the Mavericks has impressed almost everyone, as Rebecca noted in this week's <a target="_blank" href="http://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2014/12/31/7474517/power-rankings-mavericks-remain-steady-rajon-rondo-charlie-villanueva">power rankings</a>. Despite some overblown concern about Dallas' offensive efficiency dropping from super human to just really, really good since Rondo's arrival, there seems to be mostly optimism when it comes to his future as a Maverick.</p>
<p>But what about Boston? A lot of us were sad to see <span>Brandan Wright</span> go, so how is he faring on his new team? <span>Jae Crowder</span> and <span>Jameer Nelson</span> have actually seen more minutes than Wright, who's logged just 51 in the five games he's played as a Celtic, but there haven't been any huge shifts in these players' stat lines over the five games they've played, though Wright's shooting has dropped to a mere 61 percent (almost no one thought the 74 pecent he shot during his time in Dallas this season was sustainable) as he's started shooting more frequently. As with Rondo in Dallas, it's hard to evaluate after so few games, especially since none of these players have been given the kind of minutes Rondo has with his new team. But Wright has languished on more than one bench in his career, despite his talent, and it'd be nice to see him eventually become an important part of a team.</p>
<h4>But will Rondo cry in his first game back at TD Garden?</h4>
<p>Seems like we could may get some waterworks. He told <a target="_blank" href="http://espn.go.com/dallas/nba/story/_/id/12103863/rajon-rondo-dallas-mavericks-braces-emotional-return-boston-friday">ESPN,</a> "Hopefully I won't be too emotional, try not to cry a little bit, but I'm very excited to go back... Those fans are amazing there. If I do [tear up], hopefully the camera isn't on me too much. I'm going to try to blink a lot."</p>
<h4>What are the match-ups to watch?</h4>
<p>Unfortunately, given the positions of the personnel involved in this trade, the only former Maverick vs. former Celtic match-up we may see is Brandan Wright vs. <span>Dwight Powell</span>, but with the limited minutes these two players have been getting, even that one seems unlikely. We may have to settle for watching what happens when Wright finds himself involved defensively in a Rondo pick-and-roll.</p>
<p>But trade-themed match-ups aside, Boston has shown a lot of tenacity against tough teams this year, even if their record is quite poor, so while they're currently 18th in the league in offensive efficiency and 12th on defense, don't be surprised if they make the Mavericks work for this one.</p>
<p><b>GAME INFO: </b>The game tips off at 6:30 p.m. CT and will be on Fox Sports Southwest and NBATV.</p>
https://www.mavsmoneyball.com/2015/1/1/7479295/mavericks-celtics-preview-rajon-rondo-returns-bostonKate Crawford