How Rajon Rondo’s Trade to the Los Angeles Clippers Impacts NBA Title Odds

The 2021 NBA trade deadline is heating up! We’re tracking every move on deadline day, including how futures odds could be impacted with Rajon Rondo reportedly on his way out of Atlanta.

Trade Details

The Los Angeles Clippers have traded Lou Williams and two second-round picks to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Rajon Rondo, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Rajon Rondo to the Clippers Analysis

While everyone else was high on the Clippers chances of winning a championship in 2020, I was bearish. I had numerous reasons for my beliefs, most notably that Lou Williams was redundant playing along with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

Although I never saw him as an ideal fit, Williams brought more positives than negatives to this team as he was instrumental in their turnaround. Still, things were different this season as new head coach Ty Lou emphasizes more ball movement and it appears Williams was phased out of the offense with Terrence Mann and Luke Kennard becoming key rotational pieces.

The Clippers desperately need a playmaker in high leverage situations to prevent the offense from becoming stagnant and they’ve finally have one in Rondo if he has anything left in the tank.

Can he be the same player he was in the playoffs where he shot 40% from deep, while adding much needed scoring, playmaking, defense and leadership for the Lakers during their championship run? If so, the Clippers got what they paid for giving up two second-round picks in addition to Williams.

Outside of his tenure with the Mavericks, betting on “Playoff Rondo” has a solid track record and he should provide the leadership that Leonard lacks but given his injury history this season, there’s a chance the Clippers could have some buyers remorse. — Raheem Palmer

How the Trade Impacts Odds

The LA Clippers were +550 at DraftKings before and after news broke that they swapped Rajon Rondo for Lou Williams.