Rondo's rank as PG in the NBA

[wigglestrue]

Has this playoff run moved him into the top 10?

[Basileus777]

He has a ways to go before he is a top 10 pg. He's a good defender, and a decent passer, but he still has very little offensive game. Obviously he is a poor shooter, but he isn't a good finisher either. He is often too passive on offense. Besides, he's the guy teams tend to double off, and he doesn't take advantage of this as often as he should. I'd put him somewhere in the 11-15 range.

[wigglestrue]

Just a "good" defender? Only a "decent" passer? He's got a ways to go on offense, but he's got more than "very little" offensive game. And he was a "poor" shooter last year, this year he was at least average. He's definitely too passive on offense, probably has something to do with playing with Garnett/Pierce/Allen and being so young -- not worried about the passivity he showed at times, that'll cease to be a problem sooner than later, just as his shooting range will improve. I see New Jersey under location for you, just out of curiosity, would you rank him ahead of Devin Harris or behind?

Here, IMO, are the top 10 PG, in somewhat of an order:

Paul
Deron
Nash
Kidd
Billups
Baron
Parker

I don't see any reason to rank any other PG ahead of Rondo. Arenas and Roy and Iverson are not really PG. Who else should be in the top 10 over Rondo? Miller? Calderon? Hinrich? Bibby? Ford? Nelson? Harris? Mo Williams? Felton? I think Rondo is better than all of the above. I'd say he's top 10 now, especially if one doesn't include Arenas as a PG, etc. The only other PG who has a viable argument left is Calderon, but even there Rondo's defense (pretty much the best defensive PG in the NBA) blows Calderon away, IMO.

[CBS7]

Why would this playoff run make him a top 10 PG? He put up 10.2/6.6/4.1/1.7 steals and shot 40.7%/25.0%/69.1%. He had some great games but he also had some terrible games, he was pretty inconsistent.

Also, I have to say playing next to a trio of Allen/Pierce/Garnett would do wonders for your game and how you look. Of those guys you listed, I'd take Miller, Calderon, Hinrich, and Harris over him right now without thinking twice. The others aren't far behind, if they are at all.

[HawaiianJazzFan]

but even there Rondo's defense (pretty much the best defensive PG in the NBA)

What now??? Rondo could be there MAYBE one day but CP3's opponent's PER is comparable (and CP led the league in steals) as is Kidd's. Deron Williams' opponent's PER's is better than Rondo's, and Billups' Opponent PER is SIGNIFICANTLY better than Rondo's. Not to mention that Rondo has probably a top ten defensive team with him. Pierce, Garnett, and Ray allen's opp PER was ridiculous.... absolutely ridiculous, the big three played amazing defense this year, rondo was above average but nowhere near the best.

I mean Deron destroyed him this year... with Rondo guarding him Deron went for an average of 27 points and 9.5 assists on 70% shooting. He just wasn't strong enough to contain him. All of this while playing with the DPOY, and PP.

I would Definitely rank him below the following quite easily (only true PG's were rated, sorry AI, Agent, Roy, etc).
Deron
CP
Baron
NAsh
Kidd
Billups
Parker
Calderon
Andre Miller (dude is so underrated)

And this year he also was less efficient than both
Felton
Harris
both those two are debateable because statistically they are even but Rondo is younger than both so yeah about the 10-12 range.

[TMACFORMVP]

Top 10? Not a chance...(In no specific order)

CP3
Deron
Nash
Davis
Billups
Parker
Miller
Calderon
Kidd
Harris

(This isn't even including guys like Arenas who actually play the PG position). There's a couple more that are arguable as well. Guys like Hinrich who I felt just had an off season is a guy that can be considered better as well since he's arguably just as good a defender and a much better shooter (nearly 40% last season from three).

He's moving up since he's one of the top PG defenders in the league, a good finisher around the basket and has a decent mid-range game, but right now he's too inconsistent and too much of a liability outside of 20 feet to really be near the Top 10 of PG's.

[That Nicka]

IMHO

1. Chris Paul
2. Deron Williams
3. Steve Nash
4. Chauncey Billups
5. Baron Davis
6. Tony Parker
7. Jason Kidd
8. Andre Miller
9. Jose Calderon
10. T.J. Ford
11. Mo Williams
12. Devin Harris
13. Kirk Hinrich
14. Mike Bibby
15. Jameer Nelson
16. Ray Felton
17. Rajon Rondo

The only ones that are even debatable are Felton, Nelson and maybe Bibby... so... at best I'd say he's the 14th best PG in the league...

[shawngoat23]

If Rondo had a scoring mentality, a nice touch, and the ability to finish at the rim, he'd be insanely good. Think Tony Parker, except a much better rebounder and a slightly better passer who is worlds better on defense.

[wigglestrue]

It's actually a relief to see him still this underrated, despite being the floor general for an NBA champion, despite so obviously being more or less the best defensive PG in the league. Most assists in a Finals game since Magic. Christ, you could say his assists/turnovers ratio was almost Calderonian. If [insert your favorite point guard's name] got 21 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, and 6 steals in a title clincher, you'd already be handing around a HOF petition door to door. What more do you people want? Another year of this, I guess. Enough accolades begrudged on him by The Media and The Mob, so that it basically becomes necessary for you to acknowledge how good Rondo is, unless you want to look like a clown. Some rising stars get a smokeshow (and its attendant leniency) from The Consensus right off the bat, others somehow wind up in the Respect on the Installment Plan. I don't know why that happens. Well, right, screw it. Rondo's on layaway, I guess.

[TradeMachine]

He had a nice game on Tuesday, but was still a liability throughout the playoffs. Until he finds a jumper, he's not gonna be considered top 10.

[wigglestrue]

A liability throughout the playoffs????????????????????

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA.

Oh man, this thread is awesome.

[farzi]

wigglestrue:

[Pai Gow]

Jesus, its incredible how highly people can regard players when playing with 3 beasts.. But I'll give you this, he's better than Nelson, Felton (right now) and maybe Bibby but that's about it.

[TradeMachine]

A liability throughout the playoffs????????????????????

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA.

Oh man, this thread is awesome.

Get off your high horse. I know your team just won a championship, but you're acting like a real dick around here.

Yeah, the Hawks, Cavs, Pistons, and Lakers all left him wide open because he's a knock down shooter.
Doc had to put in a decrepit Sam Cassell to compensate for Rondo's inability to make outside shots. He, along with Perkins, were the weakest links on your team, and until they improve their flaws, they're not gonna be mentioned among the upper-echelon of players. One thing Rondo and Perkins have going for them is that they are young and can develop their games to become more complete.

[paul]

IMHO

1. Chris Paul
2. Deron Williams
3. Steve Nash
4. Chauncey Billups
5. Baron Davis
6. Tony Parker
7. Jason Kidd
8. Andre Miller
9. Jose Calderon
10. T.J. Ford
11. Mo Williams
12. Devin Harris
13. Kirk Hinrich
14. Mike Bibby
15. Jameer Nelson
16. Ray Felton
17. Rajon Rondo

The only ones that are even debatable are Felton, Nelson and maybe Bibby... so... at best I'd say he's the 14th best PG in the league...

Yep that list looks about right to me, Rondo perhaps goes above Felton and Nelson but that's about it, and that is still debateable.. Oh and it ignore Arenas presumably due to injury. The point to consider would be, just how good would any of those guys above him in this list look playing on Boston right now? The guy was left wiiiiiiiiiiide open throughout the playoffs while other teams scrambled to cover the offensive threats of the C's and Rondo really didn't punish them. Imagine what a shooter like Mo WIlliams would have done to the Lakers while they scrambled to find Allen and Pierce? The assist rate has to be helped by passing to allstars all the time as well.
Also whilst his defense is good it's not great, and is clearly helped by playing on probably the best defensive unit in the nba. He's a solid PG on a great team, but he's clearly not a great PG and I don't think he ever will be.

[SOUL]

Why is Bibby so overrated on this board? He sucks. I'd say Rondo is around 14.

[TheSheriff]

He one of the two best defensive point guard in the league. But there is no Gary Payton in the league right now, and most of the great 1s are only mediocre at defense. His offense is a real liability at times. If he had a jumper he is easily a top 7 point guard, but he doesn't have that jumpshot. I would take Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Steve Nash, Chauncey Billups, Baron Davis, Tony Parker, Andre Miller,Jose Calderon, T.J. Ford, Mo Williams, and Devin Harris over him. Not sure i wouldn't rather have Jason Kidd than him considering he has close to nothing left in tank. Rondo just turned 22, and he wasn't passing up wide open jump shots during the regular season (in fact he was hitting which is why he had a good fg%), so he has room to develop, which he should continue to do.

[T-Spot]

I was hearing all this crap before the play-offs about how Rondo would show everyone his awesomeness in the play-offs. Putting up 10/6.5/40% in 32 MPG on a stacked team [defensively and offensively], is very far from awesomeness. Putting up 9/6.5/36% in 33 MPG in the final two series is far from impressive.

Besides, its much easier to execute on offense when you have three future HoF's giving you open lanes and shots [when defenses starting paying a little more attention to him in the post season, his FG% plummeted from 49% to 40%]. Its much easier to look good on defense with the best defensive team in the league around you [although he is a good defender already].

I'll give him some credit though, he has shown that he is a better distributer of the ball in the play-offs, going into double digit assists four times in the post-season. Top 10? No.

Paul, Deron, Nash, Billups, Davis, Parker, Calderon, Miller, Harris, Kidd, Ford, Hinrich and Porbably Rondo. I'll give him more credit than most and put him over Nelson, Bibby and Felton, though.

[Malinhion]

Well, we knew Rondo's defense was solid before this year, but playing on one of the best defensive teams in history has solidified what was once conjecture based on his length and lateral quickness. He certainly is a ballhawk, but its because he's a hustle player. That's essentially what defense is, and Rondo looks great doing it on a team full of solid defensive options who can back him up. If he played on the Wizards we might accuse him of gambling too much, or if he played for the Warriors we'd say he's a classic nellieball guy. But as it stands he's a solid defender on a great defensive team. Point guards who are defensively better than him include Devin Harris, Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Tony Parker, Chauncey Billups, Kirk Hinrich, Baron Davis, and arguably Jason Kidd. So he's right below that group of top-flite PGs on defense.

Rondo's offense comes into question, though. Of course he looks great dishing assists on a team full of playmakers. Again Rondo's hustle initiates offense on steals and gets the Celtics running up the court. He is great at using his length to finish in transition, often drawing the and-1. He has some phenomenal passing performances, as he displayed this playoffs, when teams tend to play up on him and pressure the ball. He's great at finding any of the big three to finish the basket. He often makes the right play. However, he struggles when the defense sags off him, too often leading to dismal shooting performances coupled with low assist numbers. But inconsistency is to be expected from a young player, especially at the 1. Rondo definitely excels in his role, but I would question his ability to be the primary playmaker on another team. I don't think his playmaking is yet as strong as Andre Miller or Raymond Felton, but he is definitely approaching that level. He does do a better job protecting the ball than those guys, keeping his turnovers to a minimum. But again, this is to be expected from a fourth option.

His greatest assets are his pesky defense and the energy he brings on both ends of the court. He is the perfect player to motivate and energize a team of veterans who might be walking it up the court if he wasn't controlling the ball. His game leads to transition buckets and he knows how to play within the flow of the offense on a team where he is not the best player. He is a solid midrange shooter and makes good decisions to find the open man.

His deficiencies are his ability to create his own shot when the defense sags off. He's not as good of a playmaker as many other point guards, and he's not as good a defender as the best guys in the L. However, he certainly has the capacity to get there. Right now he brings a very good all-around game, and looks best on a team full of players who can get it done individually.

So I would probably rank him around 10-15.

Billups, Parker, Paul, Deron, Davis, Hinrich, Kidd, Nash, Miller, Harris, Bibby are all better.

You could make a case for Ford (better), Felton (better), Calderon (better), Nelson (worse).

[Baller 24]

No way, IMO this is the top 10 in no specific order:
Paul
Deron
Kidd
Nash
Hinrich
Harris
Ford
Miller
Calderon
Felton
Davis
Parker
Billups
Bibby
Williams
Arenas

Obviously if your a Celtics fan he should be top 10 right?

His defensive game is good, not GREAT like many of you guys are saying, its good, solid defender. Offensive game is terrible, sorry but if they guy developed a offensive game then he might be top 10, not even then, maybe top 15. But until then he is basically an average point guard, I mean KG, Pierce and Allen have A LOT to do with his development.