Rajon Rondo Traded to the Mavericks

The first blockbuster trade of the 2014-15 NBA season has happened. ESPN has reported that the Boston Celtics have traded point guard Rajon Rondo to the Dallas Mavericks for Jameer Nelson, Brandan Wright, Jae Crowder, a 2015 first round pick, and a future second round pick.

The man leading the league with 10.6 assists per game will now join a prolific starting lineup that consists of Monta Ellis, Chandler Parsons, Dirk Nowtizki and Tyson Chandler. Dallas is currently 19-8, good for sixth in a tightly-packed Western Conference.

Rondo will look to win another title, this time with the Dallas Mavericks.
Source

Rondo is having another consistent season, averaging 8.3 points, 10.2 assists and 7.5 rebounds per game for Boston, who are currently 9-14 on the year (9th in the East). He had been rumored to be on the trading block for about the last years, but no major discussion had taken place until recently. The Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Houston Rockets were all rumored to be trying to acquire the 28-year-old floor general, but Dallas appeared to have taken the lead over the past week.

Link- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHFwwwle-qw

The move is a gamble for Dallas, as Rondo has the option to leave for another team in free agent during the upcoming offseason. However, the thinking around the league is that the Mavs would not have pulled the trigger if they did not have reassurances that Rondo would resign with the team.

His first game as a Maverick will be on Saturday, Dec. 20, when Dallas hosts the defending champion San Antonio Spurs in a rematch of last years' Western Conference first round matchup.

During Rondo's tenure in Boston he averaged 11 points, 8.5 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game in a little over eight seasons with the Celtics.

Stay tuned for any additional updates.

Link- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXcNgF4eq3c

2014-15 NBA Standings

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Daily Recap- Nov. 21.

Who Was Hot

Jeff Teague (Atlanta PG)- Scored a season-high 28 points on 9-15 shooting, in a 99-89 win over the Detroit Pistons on Friday night. Teague also chipped in six assists, two steals and two blocks in what was one of his best games of the year.

Nikola Mirotic (Chicago PF)- Tallied 24 points and 11 rebounds in Chicago's 105-87 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. Mirotic played extra minutes when Taj Gibson, who was starting in place of an injured Pau Gasol, left the game with an ankle injury. He hit 7 of 14 shots from the field, including four 3-pointers in the game.

Source- http://www.rantsports.com/nba/files/2014/10/nikola-mirotic-4.jpg 

John Wall (Washington PG)- Broke out of his shooting slump, scoring 28 points on 12-20 shooting in a 91-78 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers Friday night. Wall filled up the stat sheet besides scoring,  recording seven assists, six rebounds and four steals in the statement win over LeBron James and company.

Zach Randolph (Memphis PF)- Posted a double-double of 16 points and 16 rebounds in a 117-100 win over the Boston Celtics. It was just another day at the office for Randolph who seems to put up double-doubles on pretty much a nightly basis for the Grizzlies.

Source- http://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/nba/players/full/1017.png&w=350&h=254 

Dallas Mavericks- The Mavs dominated the Lakers on Friday, winning by a score of 140-106. Dallas  had eight players in double figures, with Dirk Nowitzki scoring 23 points, while Monta Ellis scored 20 points and had 10 assists. As a team, the Mavericks shot 62% from the field and 51% from three-point range.

Who Was Not

Trey Bruke (Utah Jazz PG)- Scored only two points on 1-8 shooting in a 101-88 loss to the Golden State Warriors. Burke has had trouble scoring the ball this year, averaging a little under 10 points a game on 32% shooting from the field.

Ryan Anderson (New Orleans PF)- Scored only 10 points on 2-11 shooting in a 117-97 loss to the Denver Nuggets Friday night. It marked the second time all season the Anderson failed to record a 3-pointer in a game.

Nick Young (Los Angeles SG/SF)- Shot 2-7 from the field, tallying only five points in a 140-106 loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Young cooled off after scoring 16 or more points in his first two games of the season (missed first 10 games due to hand injury).