Free agency for the Los Angeles Lakers has been quiet as the team is striving to preserve cap space for next summer when players like Paul George, LeBron James, DeMarcus Cousins, and others could be available. With that being the case, they are only offering free agents one-year deals this summer, which hasn’t been enough to land anyone just yet. However, one player that has been long-rumored to wind up in Los Angeles is Rajon Rondo.
Rondo has a long history of success playing for the Boston Celtics, but since that time he has bounced around the league a bit, playing for the Dallas Mavericks, Sacramento Kings, and Chicago Bulls. The Lakers are in the market for a backup point guard, and Rondo could double as a veteran mentor for rookie Lonzo Ball. According to Adrian Wojnarowksi of ESPN, Magic Johnson met with Rondo today in Los Angeles:
Free agent guard Rajon Rondo met with Lakers president Magic Johnson in Los Angeles today, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 11, 2017
While some may contend that Rondo’s sometimes volatile personality wouldn’t be a good fit with the young Lakers, reports out of Chicago indicated that he was an asset as a mentor for that franchise’s young players last season. Mark Medina of the Southern California News Group confirmed Wojnarowski’s report and added that there is serious interest from the Lakers:
Confirmed. I'm told Lakers "expressed serious interest" and plan to follow up soon. https://t.co/6Bbs2WtoMp
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) July 11, 2017
While many Lakers fans will have reservations about adding Rondo, the Lakers will do their due diligence in order to make sure that it is a good fit. As a passing savant, Rondo could be a benefit to Ball and the rest of the young team as long as he understands his role.
It isn’t clear yet whether or not a deal will get done, but clarity should come soon.
