Rajon Rondo didn't have permission to skip a team flight. (USATSI)
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Danny Ainge says he asked Rajon Rondo not to skip out on traveling with the team, but the mercurial point guard did anyway.
In an interview with Boston's CBS Sports radio on Wednesday, Ainge revealed the team knew of Rondo's intention to miss a team flight to Sacramento from Los Angeles, but specifically requested he not.
“He let Brad [Stevens] know and he let me know that he was going to stay in L.A. an extra day, and we didn't think that he should,” Ainge said. “But it was his choice and [we told him] there may be consequences if you stay. It was that simple.”
Rondo, who was scheduled to sit the second game of a back-to-back after playing in Los Angeles, stayed behind to celebrate his 28th birthday.
“In the end, him and I had a long talk about it. He planned it before and he had reason to believe it would be OK. I understand his reason because of what he's grown up with and what he's witnessed. You won't see it happen again, and we've just moved on from it.
“I think that now Rondo understands more clearly what we want out of him as a captain. That we want him on the road with the team, and his leadership on the bench is important whether he plays or doesn't."
Added Ainge: “I talked with Rondo about why he did what he did. I didn't agree with it, but we had a good talk and we're over it.”
Rondo is in an interesting spot, having been named team captain this season. And as a captain, the expectation is for leadership. Which in other words, not these sort of things.
“He is definitely our captain whether anyone gave him the title or not. That's his personality,” Ainge said. “He didn't have the title the last five or six years, but he was still a captain. He was a coach on the floor and one of three or four captains with Paul [Pierce], Ray [Allen] and [Kevin Garnett]. They all act differently, and they all make mistakes by the way in their leadership roles, but I look at every guy on the team as a leader. You're either leading guys to do better, or leading guys to do worse.
“I have no issues whatsoever with Rondo being our captain. He's been acting like our captain for three or four years.”
But Ainge stressed the team is over the situation and moving on with no issue.
“Rondo is an emotional, stubborn kid. He's very bright, and I don't mind these kinds of emotions,” Ainge said. “What I care about is he a guy I want to play with, play for, if the guys on the team back him and want him on their side night in and night out. Those are the really important issues. Rondo is never going to become Tom Brady and say all the politically correct things and do everything we want him to do, but we still love him in spite of that because his teammates back him and want him on their side. They will go to war with Rondo, anytime.
“We've had a culture that has been a little different. It has been a great culture of winning, which is very important, and these kind of things have happened. We had a head coach that lived in a different city and would take different planes to different cities. We've had KG, who I think Rondo has learned more from as a leader and a pro than any other player. KG didn't sit on the bench when he didn't play, and Rondo has been doing that for every game, except that Sacramento game and Milwaukee game — which we held him back.”
Basketball Hot News
Spurs coach Popovich: “Sometimes in timeouts I’ll say, ‘I’ve got nothing for you.’”
Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich has a reputation of being difficult to deal with if you’re a member of the media, but a lot of that is situational.
There’s almost nothing to be gleaned from in-game interviews between quarters, for example, so Popovich treats those with the respect they deserve. Other times, he’s been known to ridicule reporters for asking less than creative questions, and I’ve personally seen him respond to a post-game query with nothing more than 20-30 seconds of uncomfortable silence.
But I’ve also seen Popovich be engaging when the mood is right, or when the right questions are being asked. Those things came together Tuesday before San Antonio’s win over the Cavaliers, when the coach spoke honestly about how he’s gotten his players to take ownership of the offense.
From Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News:
Q. How do you get players to take ownership of the offense? Is it a confidence thing?
Popovich: “That’s a good question. A lot depends on the competitiveness and the character of the player. Often times, I’ll appeal to that. Like, I can’t make every decision for you. I don’t have 14 timeouts. You guys got to get together and talk. You guys might see a mismatch that I don’t see. You guys need to communicate constantly — talk, talk, talk to each other about what’s going on on the court.
“I think that communication thing really helps them. It engenders a feeling that they can actually be in charge. I think competitive character people don’t want to be manipulated constantly to do what one individual wants them to do. It’s a great feeling when players get together and do things as a group. Whatever can be done to empower those people …
“Sometimes in timeouts I’ll say, ‘I’ve got nothing for you. What do you want me to do? We just turned it over six times. Everybody’s holding the ball. What else do you want me to do here? Figure it out.’ And I’ll get up and walk away. Because it’s true. There’s nothing else I can do for them. I can give them some bulls—, and act like I’m a coach or something, but it’s on them.
There’s more, and the entire Q + A is worth a read. What’s most interesting, however, is hearing one of the most well-respected coaches in the game explain that there’s only so much he can do, and sometimes, it’s up to the players themselves to figure things out.
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