Veteran guard Rajon Rondo has announced his retirement from the NBA after 16 seasons, four All-Star selections and two championships.
Rondo made the announcement during an appearance this week on the All the Smoke podcast; when asked by host Matt Barnes if the NBA has seen the last of him, Rondo replied: “Absolutely, yeah, I’m done. I can’t. I’d rather spend time with my kids.” Rondo, 38, last played in the 2021-22 season with the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers; he did not play last season, or during the current 2023-24 campaign. He added: “What a time, it was definitely something that I never took for granted when I was in the game. I loved every minute of it, and I appreciate the brotherhood that I was able to share and bond and grow with over the years. I’ve learned so much in this game and it’s made me the man who I am today. … I tell people all the time, this wasn’t a dream of mine, it was a goal. I was able to lock in, stay disciplined, I didn’t party a lot in college. But it was worth the sacrifice of me getting to where I wanted to be in life.”
Rondo entered the NBA as the No. 21 overall pick by the Phoenix Suns, but was traded during the draft to the Boston Celtics, where he won his first championship in 2008 and stayed until being traded to the Dallas Mavericks during the 2014-15 campaign. Rondo also played for the Sacramento Kings, Chicago Bulls, New Orleans Pelicans, Lakers, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers and Cavaliers. Rondo also won a title in 2020 with the Lakers.
Over 957 career appearances, Rondo averaged 9.8 points, 7.9 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game. In 2009-10 and 2012-13, he averaged a career-high 13.7 points per game; and in 2011-12 and 2015-16, he logged a career-high 11.7 assists per game.
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