Rajon Rondo publicly remained loyal to the Boston Celtics until he was traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, but Rondo's close friend and former Celtics teammate, Kendrick Perkins, says Rondo was ready for a change in scenery.
"He wanted out, but he would never say that though," Perkins said to Yahoo Sports.
Perkins and Rondo were teammates in Boston from 2006-2011, and remain extremely close friends to this day. Perkins indicated that Rondo expressed excitement about being traded to the Mavs in a brief phone conversation the two had on Thursday.
"Going to nice weather, a contender," Perkins said. "Hopefully, he will do what he got to do in terms of his contract extension. It's a great opportunity. I'm happy for him. I'm not happy he is in the West, but I'm happy for him. His time was probably up in Boston. He did his due.
"He was cool, happy. He was excited. He's going to a contender. He's 29 [years old] so rebuilding is out of the question now."
Perkins, now a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder, sees nothing but big things ahead for Rondo in Dallas.
"He makes them a better team," Perkins said. "He is going to be able to pass for open shots, so he is going to be dangerous, especially with the lineup he got with him. It's going to be pretty sick.
"They were already a good team. He made them a great team in my opinion."
Rondo was the last player from the Celtics' 2008 NBA championship squad that also featured Perkins, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce. Perkins was traded to the Thunder in 2011 - the first player from that starting lineup to be dealt.
"It was fun while it lasted and fun to be a part of," Perkins said. "I still talk to most of these guys to this day."
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