Rondo Suddenly Key Player in 2010 Free Agency

Newsflash: Rajon Rondo is the ish. Derrick Rose still has a bright future ahead of him, and Paul Pierce won last night’s game. But so far, the major story in these playoffs has been Rondo’s ascension from excellent role player to premier playmaker. The kind of player that, in an era where point guards are increasingly important, any team would love to have.↵
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↵And guess what? Dude is part of the Free Agent Class of 2010, and no one even realized it. So while Boston must be thrilled about their newfound star, they might also be a little nervous, hoping that the two parties can work out an extension this summer. From The Boston Globe:↵↵⇥Rondo is making $1.3 million this season, $2.05 million next season, and is expected to receive a major increase in 2010. While Celtics president Danny Ainge prefers to talk about such matters in the offseason, Rondo’s agent, Bill Duffy, said it would be a “natural move for both parties” to talk extension this summer. If he isn’t re-signed this summer, Boston could face stiff competition for Rondo in the free agent market in 2010, with a lot of thirsty teams projected to have money.↵↵

The question is, how much can Rondo command after this postseason? And how does this newfound salary demand figure into the Celtics’ future? Ray Allen’s contract expires just in time for next summer ... is someone, either Allen or Rondo, going to have to take one for the team? Reading that sentence over, it seems absolutely implausible that it would be Rondo. How much this extension ends up being for (because you have to figure they’ll get it done) will give us a sense of just how good the Celtics, and the rest of the league, think this guy really is -- and how much better he could get going forward.↵
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↵Maybe this is a stretch, but I’m interested to see how Rondo’s deal stacks up to what Boozer can get if he indeed opts out this summer. Anything to fuel the PG/big man debate.↵