Howard Smith – USA Today Sports Images
The initial assumption around the NBA regarding the Boston Celtics when the Detroit Pistons completed a sign-and-trade that landed them Brandon Jennings was that point guard Rajon Rondo would be staying with the Cs, at least for now. However, apparently it was a little presumptuous to think that was going to be the case.
According to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe, the Pistons are still very interested in acquiring the Celtics star point guard. Moreover, Washburn speculated that Jennings could actually be the core of a potential deal to try and bring Rondo to Detroit.
Though Jennings may be a more attractive and high-profile name than Brandon Knight would have been, it’s hard to imagine the Celtics being that excited about landing Jennings. Boston is an organization that is in the middle of a full rebuild, which is why they would even consider trading Rondo, and Jennings isn’t exactly the type of player one would imagine they would want to build with.
In his four NBA seasons, Jennings has shown flashes of brilliance, but has ultimately yielded uninspiring results. In 291 career games, 289 of them starts, Jennings has averaged solid numbers, putting up 17 points, 5.7 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals in 34.6 minutes per game. However, his inefficiency on the offensive end has been his biggest issue. Over those four years he has shot just 39.4 percent from the field, having just one season where he shot above 40 percent, and 35.4 percent from three.
Essentially, Jennings has established himself as not much more than a gunner. The thing that makes that a scary notion is that he’s a point guard, so he has the ball in his hands often, meaning there are a lot of opportunities for him to take ill-advised shots.
Are Jennings’, who’s just 23 years old, issues incurable? Not at all—there’s no reason to believe the right coach and the right situation couldn’t hone his skills and make him into an effective NBA point guard. However, as it stands right now, he doesn’t seem like the type of player the Celtics would want back in exchange for Rondo, their one remaining franchise-player.
Cody Williams is a Senior Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20, add him on Google+ and like his Facebook page.
