Rumor: Pacers Have Inquired About Rajon Rondo

The Boston Celtics have reportedly been fielding offers on Rajon Rondo for as long as he has been in the league. So now that he is back healthy and playing for an awful team, it is no surprise that his name is all over the rumor mill — yet again.

According to Marc Stein of ESPN, the Dallas Mavericks are making a hard charge for the enigmatic point guard who leads the league in assists per game. The following is from his report on ESPN.com.

"The Boston Celtics, after years of flirting with potential Rajon Rondo deals, are in substantive discussions on a trade that would send Rondo to the Dallas Mavericks, according to league sources.Sources told ESPN.com that the Celtics and Mavericks have been discussing a swap that would furnish Boston with multiple draft picks — including at least one first-rounder — as well as blossoming Mavericks center Brandan Wright and other players needed to make the salary-cap math work.The Celtics also have been talking to teams such as the Sacramento Kings, New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets about potential Rondo deals, according to sources, but the most advanced discussions have been with Dallas.Because Rondo is in the final year of his contract, sources say any team that can come to terms on a trade with Boston likely will request permission to confer with Rondo and his representatives to get his input on the destination, giving them a level of influence into where he might be dealt."

Here are some of Stein’s recent tweets on the matter.

Among the teams other than Dallas that Stein lists as possible destinations are the Kings, Knicks, Lakers, and Rockets. You may notice that “Indiana Pacers” does not appear. Since Stein seems to be the closest reporter to this story, that should be enough to disappoint any Indiana fans who want to see Rondo in the blue and gold.

Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski also has Dallas and Houston as the leaders for Rajon Rondo.

However, Sam Amick of USA Today is another of the most-respected reporters covering the NBA, and he has included the Pacers as a team that the Pacers “have inquired about Rondo.” Here is what Amick wrote.

"A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed reports that the Dallas Mavericks and Celtics are having talks about a Rondo trade, though Boston is also known to be engaging with several other teams about their four-time All-Star. A second person with knowledge of the situation said the Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Lakers and Indiana Pacers are among the many teams who have inquired about Rondo."

Still, don’t get your hopes up. The Celtics/Mavericks talks sound advanced and — as with every trade rumor involving Indiana — the Pacers don’t have much that would interest the other party give up.

This is likely just Larry Bird and the Indiana Pacers front office doing their job. They have a talent disparity and want to improve, so when they hear Rondo may be available, they probably make that phone call. Bird and Ainge played together for years in Boston, too, so this would only take a short phone call between old acquaintances.

Don’t expect anything to happen with Rondo.