Former Maverick Rondo likely to be greeted with boos in return to Dallas

Rick Carlisle wasn’t interested Monday in answering questions about Rajon Rondo’s 46-game tenure with the Dallas Mavericks last season.

“I’ll answer questions about tomorrow’s game,” the Mavs coach said. “I’m not going back to last year. I’ve already answered this round of questions once — three weeks ago or four weeks ago — and everybody moved on. You’ve got a question about the game in particular, I’ll be happy to answer it.”

The Mavs acquired Rondo in a Dec. 18, 2014 trade with the Boston Celtics with high hopes that he could become their point guard of the future. But on Feb. 24 during a home game against Toronto, Rondo cursed at Carlisle while walking to the bench during a timeout, and Carlisle cursed back at him.

The two men reportedly got into a heated argument again in the locker room after the game, and Rondo was subsequently suspended by the Mavs for one game for conduct detrimental to the team.

And then in the Mavs’ playoff series against Houston, Rondo and the team parted ways between Games 2 and 3 shortly after the Mavs said he suffered a back injury.

Rondo never played another game for the Mavs, became a free agent and eventually signed a one-year, $10 million contract over the summer with the Sacramento Kings.

The Kings (13-20) visit Dallas and play the Mavs (19-15) at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at American Airlines Center.

While Carlisle wasn’t interesting in rehashing Rondo’s timeline with the Mavs, he’s aware that the 10-year veteran is averaging 12 points and leads the NBA in assists with 11.3 per game while playing at the level he was before his time in Dallas.

“He’s had a big year for them, he’s played extremely well,” Carlisle said. “It’s no surprise. “He’s a prideful guy and he worked hard this summer and he’s having a great year.”

The Mavs were 26-20 in the games Rondo played in last season. And because of the way his tenure ended here, more than likely he’ll be confronted with a chorus of boos whenever he touches the ball Tuesday.

That involvement by the fans could work to the Mavs’ favor.

“I wasn’t here at the time, I just saw it from the outside and I try not to speculate too much on whatever was going on at that time,” shooting guard Wesley Matthews said. “Our concerns aren’t with how the fans are going to respond to Rondo, how Rondo is going to respond back to Dallas.

“Our concerns are how ... is this team going to be the playoff team that we know that we are, and going to be that team that can bring it every single night, and it starts tomorrow.”

Rondo scored 21 points when the Kings defeated the Mavs 112-98 in Sacramento on Nov. 30.

“He played well against us the first game and I’m sure there’s definitely a little added motivation for him whether he admits it or not,” point guard Deron Williams said. “So I’m sure he’ll be ready to go this game.

“We’ve got to try to keep him out of the lane, keep him from just being a facilitator and making easy passes. We got to make things tough on him, and he’s shooting the ball a lot better from 3-point range.”

The Mavs fouled Rondo seven times in the November game, and he made 7 of 14 free throws. Carlisle isn’t sure if that tactic will be part of his game plan Tuesday.

“He’s in great shape and he obviously had a big summer working on his shooting, working on his game,” Carlisle said. “He’s shooting much better at the free throw line — he’s shooting 60 percent since our game.”

“So he’s not a guy that you say, ‘Hey, we’ve got to foul that guy in situation when they’re in the bonus.’ So he’s obviously worked hard.”

But no one knows if all that hard work and fire the combative Rondo brings to the court will be a factor.

“I know he was on Dallas and he didn’t have the best relationship and time here, so I’m sure like anybody playing against their old team they want to show out,” Matthews said. “But Rondo always played with an edge, a tenacity and brings something special to the game.

“He’s one of those guys that you’re not worried about his scoring or shooting the ball. Yet he finds a way to be extremely impactful on the game.”

This story was originally published January 4, 2016 at 8:58 PM with the headline "Former Maverick Rondo likely to be greeted with boos in return to Dallas."