Rajon Rondo Says He Hasn’t “Played Defense In A Couple Years”

Before Rajon Rondo plays against the Boston Celtics for the first time in his career, the enigmatic point guard threw some (unintentional?) shade at his former team. Speaking to reporters on the TD Garden floor at shootaround today, the Dallas Mavericks star said he hadn’t played defense “in a couple years” before getting traded.

Rondo: "I haven’t played defense in a couple years… But here they expect me to play defense.” Brad Stevens launches his laptop into a wall.

— Chris Forsberg (@ChrisForsberg_) January 2, 2015

Interesting – especially because the numbers support Rondo’s assertion.

One of the reasons why we were relatively down on the Rondo trade from the Mavericks’ perspective was because his defensive reputation didn’t align with his current impact. The Celtics allowed 2.3 more points per 100 possessions with Rondo on the floor this season, and the numbers were even less favorable of his impact on that end in 2013-2014.

But there’s been a seachange in Dallas. Rondo’s defensive rating with the Mavs is a team-best and utterly dominant 93.7. And when he’s off the floor? Rick Carlisle’s defense has crumbled to an efficiency of 114.7 points per 100 possessions, good for an on-court/off-court discrepancy of 21.0 full points.

There’s noise associated with those numbers, of course, sample size being chief among them. But advanced metrics and a simple eye-test at least somewhat confirm Rondo’s sentiment – he’s been a far better defender with the Mavericks this season than he was with the Celtics.

Does fault lie at the feet of Boston coach Brad Stevens, then? Hardly. The Celtics’ head man is notoriously detail-oriented and known for his strong defensive principles. What’s far more likely is that Rondo simply feels more inclined to buckle down and give maximum effort defensively now that he’s playing for a contender.

Such talk won’t endear Rondo to the TD Garden crowd either way. He’ll undoubtedly receive a warm reception at Friday night’s game, but whether or not he will going forward depends on the frequency of incendiary – and derogatory – jabs like these.