Mavs’ Rondo Not Upset By Crunch-Time Benching

Rajon Rondo, the four-time All-Star point guard whose prowess in the clutch was cited by the Dallas Mavericks’ brass when they acquired him in a December blockbuster trade, was benched for the final 5:12 of Friday night’s 102-98 loss to the Chicago Bulls.

Coach Rick Carlisle repeatedly referred to Rondo’s crunch-time benching as a “coach’s decision” during his postgame news conference and declined to discuss the strategic logic of not playing Rondo down the stretch.

But Rondo stressed he wasn’t upset with Carlisle.

“Coach made a decision. It’s as simple as that,” said Rondo, who had six points on 3-of-9 shooting, four assists and two rebounds in 27 minutes. “I’ve been in this game a long time. It’s not like it’s the end of the world.”

via Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas