Rondo, eyeing teaching profession, joins Bucks

IRVINE, Calif. — In June, when former NBA All-Star and two-time champion Rajon Rondo married his spouse in Lake Como, Italy, his first NBA head coach was among the many attendees. And there, Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers delivered his former level guard a message.

“Get your ass to camp,” Rivers instructed Rondo, as Rondo recalled to ESPN on Thursday.

With that, Rondo has spent the week with the Bucks as a visitor coach for his or her coaching camp at UC Irvine, and Rivers instructed ESPN that Rondo will stay with the workforce in an unspecified capability this season. “You will see him quite a bit,” Rivers mentioned. “That is all I will say.”

Rondo, who final performed with the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers in 2021-22 and formally retired from a 16-season NBA profession this previous April, mentioned he “completely” hopes to be an NBA coach some day.

“There’s a whole lot of components that go into teaching,” Rondo mentioned. “You simply cannot say, I will be a coach, after which all the pieces works out and that is the way it occurs. So sure personalities must mesh, [and there’s] a whole lot of sacrifice. There are particular issues that I am studying. The morning conferences, the quantity of hours you are spending watching movie, it is quite a bit.”

Carrying a Bucks hoodie and sweatpants, Rondo has been helping gamers throughout follow and filling up a pocket book with hand-written observations.

“I am studying what it seems to be like,” he mentioned of being on a training employees.

Rondo mentioned he would not have an actual path in thoughts.

“You see individuals go from not teaching to head-coaching jobs on a regular basis,” he mentioned. “Lots of people go straight to changing into assistant coaches. So there’s simply no path. I simply need to search as a lot info as potential.”

Rondo declined to say whether or not he acquired any affords from different groups, however he mentioned he appreciated that Rivers, who coached Rondo for seven seasons in Boston, is giving him this chance.

Rivers returned the reward.

“He is the neatest participant I’ve ever coached — and never simply sensible,” Rivers instructed ESPN. “He is aware of when to and when to not say stuff. He is an awesome workforce builder. It is simply enjoyable, and it is nice to have him round.”

Requested whether or not he is discovering his voice as a coach, Rondo mentioned, “I feel I’ve all the time had that. It is laborious for me to be quiet if I see one thing. I am a helper. That is what life’s about, serving to the following individual round you, and that is the place I am at this specific time this week. I am right here to assist, and that is what I can supply.”

Rondo’s potential for changing into a coach is one thing that has adopted him nearly since he started enjoying basketball. His highschool coach as soon as instructed ESPN that Rondo would at some point turn into a coach, as did his faculty coach at Kentucky, as did Rivers, and as did Brad Stevens, who succeeded Rivers when Rivers left the Celtics in 2014 to turn into the pinnacle coach of the Los Angeles Clippers.

Rondo has lengthy been getting ready, too, by learning coaches on the 9 groups that he performed with all through his NBA profession.

“There is a completely different kind of respect that you’ve while you have a look at it from their perspective,” Rondo mentioned. “Clearly, they’re making choices primarily based on just one factor and that is simply attempting to win. So, as a participant, chances are you’ll suppose he is choosing on me, or he isn’t enjoying me for some purpose, however, on the finish of the day, his job is on the road. So, he isn’t by no means actually private from that perspective while you’re a coach. Typically gamers could really feel that manner, so it is a completely different seat that you simply’re sitting in and understanding of the sport.”

Some gamers have made the transition to teaching, however Rivers beforehand instructed ESPN that maybe the one difficulty that Rondo would want to regulate to is having persistence with gamers who could not see the sport as he did.

“The distinction I feel with Rondo is he sees all the pieces,” Rivers mentioned. “He would not simply see his place, he sees all people’s place. He is aware of all people’s performs. I am telling you, he is a savant. He is the one one I’ve coached — and I’ve coached some actually sensible gamers — however Rondo’s understanding of units, his job, what this man ought to be doing, and doing the proper stuff, is unbelievable. And he sees it early. That is why our relationship is so good. And it was dangerous early, as a result of he’s so sensible. It changed into an incredible relationship as a result of he is the one participant I used to offer my playsheet to earlier than video games. It is the one time I’d end video games the place I’d say he referred to as an awesome sport, as a result of that was him from my playsheet, like a catcher.”

Rondo, 38, has heard the remark about persistence earlier than, however he mentioned he is at a unique place in his life, particularly as a father of three.

“Children create persistence, after which as you proceed to dwell life, you develop persistence as nicely, what I imply?” he mentioned.

He additionally cited his expertise enjoying on so many groups and with star gamers.

“It is about having the ability to perceive how everybody can get coached in a different way,” he mentioned. “You possibly can’t have the identical strategy while you’re teaching versus one workforce versus subsequent after which personnel.”

Rondo mentioned he nonetheless will get the need, at occasions, to get on the courtroom as a participant.

“There’s so many individuals in camp, I do not need to take something from anyone else,” he mentioned, “however being an ex-player, you get that itch. Like, let me present you the way it’s executed.”

Rondo, a four-time NBA All-Star, led the NBA in steals per sport in 2009-10 and in assists per sport in 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2015-16. He made the league’s All-Defensive Crew 4 occasions and gained NBA titles with the 2007-08 Boston Celtics and the 2019-20 Lakers. He averaged 9.8 factors, 7.9 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.6 steals in 957 profession video games.

Nowadays, Rondo mentioned he is working to complete his bachelor’s diploma in human communications on the College of Kentucky — an effort he started practically 20 years in the past — and that he ought to earn his diploma by the spring. Many of the programs he takes are on-line.

“I’ve an examination tonight,” he mentioned with fun. “It is so completely different going to highschool 20 years later. It is fully completely different. It is humorous. I am writing my papers and children are speaking about their profession and what they need to be in life, and I’ve already sort of executed that.”

For Rivers, having Rondo round reminded him of his personal journey from being an NBA level guard to a head coach.

“I simply suppose there’s sure guys that ought to be a coach,” he mentioned. “It is humorous, I by no means thought I used to be going to teach and Pat Riley instructed me I am teaching. I mentioned, no, I will do TV. He mentioned, ‘You will be a coach’ and Pat Riley by no means relented. And once I did TV these first three years, he would ship texts or letters like, ‘Get your f—ing ass on the sideline.’ And I really feel the identical manner [with Rondo].”