Isaiah Thomas no longer will receive a tribute video when he returns to TD Garden on Feb. 11, but there are plenty of valid reasons why he should.
New Orleans Pelicans point guard and former Boston Celtics star Rajon Rondo doesn’t want to hear them, though.
Rondo, as well as fellow Celtic-turned-Pelican Tony Allen, expressed their displeasure with the idea of Thomas’ tribute video — which would overlap with Paul Pierce’s jersey retirement ceremony — before Tuesday’s game against the Celtics.
After New Orleans’ 116-113 overtime win, Rondo doubled down.
Rajon Rondo was irked to hear that the Celtics would honor Isaiah Thomas on any night. "What has he done?” Rondo asked. Told that he led the Celtics to the conference finals last year, Rondo remarked, “Oh, that’s what we celebrate around here?”
— Bill Doyle (@BillDoyle15) January 17, 2018
More Rondo on IT: “This is the Boston Celtics. This isn’t the Phoenix Suns, no disrespect to any other organization, but you don’t hang conference titles. Do we hang going to the conference finals? What do we hang here?”
Title banners, Rondo was told.
“OK, cool,” Rondo said.— Bill Doyle (@BillDoyle15) January 17, 2018
Those are harsh words, but he does have a valid point.
The 31-year-old received his own tribute video when he returned to the Garden as a member of the Dallas Mavericks in 2015.
Allen also stood by his original take after the game.
Tony Allen is glad that Isaiah Thomas decided not to be honored on night when Celtics will retire Paul Pierce's number. “That’s only right,” Allen said. “I respect that.”
— Bill Doyle (@BillDoyle15) January 17, 2018
The Celtics may find a way to recognize Thomas at some point outside of just showing him on the video board. But by turning down the team’s offer when the Cleveland Cavaliers visited Boston earlier in January, he may inadvertently have turned the page on a possible tribute.
