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People discount locker room chemistry, or at least the power of non-terrible locker room chemistry. You don’t need to like, be friends with, or align with everyone in a locker room … but when one guy is the lynchpin for bringing down the whole joint, it becomes fatal.
Obviously, this is about Rajon Rondo and the Dallas Mavs.
The Mavs have been an odd thing. They upgraded the roster because Dirk Nowitzki gave them a healthy discount, even pulling one of the very few elite talents in the NBA mid-season to try and make a playoff run. It’s worked out roughly as well as walking into a frat party with Yahtzee, a box of Capri Sun, and five other dudes.
After Rondo played scrap minutes, including no crucial ones in the Mavs’ Game 2 loss to Houston and subsequent “back injury,” he’s done on that roster. He can now freely talk to the Lakers’ players without worrying that anyone will find out, if he worried beforehand, which I doubt.
The pro Rondo side always said that if Rick Carlisle would give him the keys to the car, he’d drive the thing far. Carlisle is notorious for being a bit of a micro manager as a coach. His grating style both on and off the court got him run out of Detroit and Indiana in spite of constant success. Winning a title in Dallas has bought him ultimate time.
Once upon a time, Carlisle let some guy named Jason Kidd take some of the reigns for Dallas and let him call the plays and run the O sometimes independent of Rick and though it must have pained him like a girl letting her boyfriend go out to the bar because he said the only way to fix things is “getting space,” it worked.
What the pro Rondo camp doesn’t realize is that everything in life is about collateral. Kidd, and aspiring coach who had the respect of the locker room, had it. Rondo, who hasn’t been with the roster for very long to attain that kind of collateral … didn’t. And why would he, texting his side girl on the side (Lakers) while hanging out with his current girlfriend just until he can get out of the relationship in a month or two because the lease is up on the house.
Carlisle giving the keys to Rondo would have told the locker room that a cantankerous personality who hasn’t walked through the fire and isn’t particularly loyal could have broken the joint for this year and beyond. It’s not worth it to “assume” Rondo will change everything because he has talent.
And because he has talent, Rondo doesn’t really care what a backside sore he’s being, or in this case, has been.
“It’s awkward.” And, “it was a tough situation, but it’s over now.”
Those were statements uttered by J.J. Barea when asked about the Rondo situation. He has no collateral in that locker room, and him leaving is seen as it being “over now,” apparently. That should tell you everything you need to know about it.
It’s pretty clear that guys in that locker room that want to win basketball games give no cares for Rondo or his attitude.
Rondo will get his money because talent in sports is like a girl who’s a 10: no matter what she does, there’s always someone, somewhere, willing to put up with her and telling everyone they can turn her around.
Meanwhile, the Mavs, as wounded as they are, have more games to play. I’ll give them a puncher’s chance because removing a problem from the locker room can be a big deal. If you think Rondo isn’t a problem, go watch the Mavs do a few interviews.
Credit Carlisle for being pretty candid about it all too. He’s a pretty good fellow for not completely tossing Rondo under the bus while not indicating at all that he’d have any shot at being back.
It’s all too bad, because this could have been an amazing run with that roster in the twilight of Nowitzki’s career. He’s been the biggest part of a movement that’s seen a fundamental shift in how the game is scouted and drafted.
But, the Mavs have one last gasp, at least for one game. They win, and maybe the good vibes are back. Good vibes go a long way. They lose, and there’s a lot of waste, whether folks get paid or not. But don’t blame Rick Carlisle. He’s taking one last, worthwhile shot at it.
