'Hold onto Rajon Rondo' is the ultimatum for the Boston Celtics

Rajon Rondo became the pivot for the Boston Celtics and letting him go would only weaken the franchise

Five years ago, the Boston Celtics proved its might by lifting the NBA Championship, usurping the Los Angeles Lakers. The image of the Celtics was morphed back into that of reputed stature, amended from that of lottery dependents.

The grids at New England finally had its prized asset back in the reckoning of the NBA’s elite. Fans, who never failed to flock the Garden where the Celtics play, then had a joyous reason to celebrate. After decades of under-achievement on the basketball court, fortunes reversed for the Boston Celtics.

Five years from then, the team has gone back to the the dreaded rebuilding phase. Last season saw the team barely squeeze into the playoffs with a mediocre outing at best during the regular season. It signalled for a new forefront at Boston – a team that could cope with fast-paced setting where the young bambinos from the league can thrive in.

It also reoriented the seasonal ambitions of the Celtics in 2013-14. Trading Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Jason Terry to the glitzy Brooklyn Nets, and letting go off Doc Rivers to the enterprising Los Angeles Clippers meant Boston will be back to square one – only this time a lot better off than in late 80s or early 2000s.

On July 3, a young coach by the name of Brad Stevens was appointed to govern a franchise undergoing complete revamp. From upper-management to coaching staff and even the players on court, the Celtics have brought in a host of new faces.

While General Manager Danny Ainge still holds his fortress steady in the boardroom, the same can be said for only a select few faces in the roster – the most prominent being, Rajon Rondo.

But that wasn’t the case earlier this month. A string of Western Conference teams seemed interested in luring away the point guard but nothing prevailed at the end. Till today, Rajon Rondo is still legally bound to his Boston Celtics contract, and it looks likely the situation will be same come this October.

Brad Stevens has come out in vehement support of Rondo, who he personally sees as prime leader of this time. So do I, without a question of a doubt, even if reports still continue to link the All-Star ball-handler out of Beantown.

From a rookie that saw limited game time to becoming the face of the entire franchise, the playmaker has seen it all. In all honesty, Rajon Rondo wasn’t perpetually the driving force in a Celtics team full of glorified superstars. When Kevin Garnett wore the No. 5, not many dared to dispute what he said in the locker room. Paul Pearce was, for nearly two decades, Boston’s beloved Truth and only the offenders believed anybody shot the ball better than Ray Allen.

While the triumvirate of the Celtics’ kernel flourished and in succession departed, Rajon Rondo remains the only key element standing strong from the successes of 2008. Everybody lauded Rivers’ ideology in fostering a backbone behind the “Big Three”, the most crucial ingredient being Rondo’s dexterity in backcourt. But not everybody expected the realism to happen for the team to be entirely indigent on the point guard.

In 2012-13, Rondo’s ACL tear signalled a tumultuous predicament for the Celtics backroom to handle. His time out meant that the likes of Avery Bradley and Courtney Lee were slotted into the No. 1 position.