Hindsight is always 20/20.
The Rajon Rondo trade proved to be an unmitigated disaster for the Dallas Mavericks, but few could've predicted at the time that things would work out so poorly.
Even head coach Rick Carlisle - whose irreconcilable differences with Rondo appear to have definitively shoved the impending free agent out the door - believes the move was a calculated and worthwhile gambit.
"In the case of anything, there is risk, but there are risks worth taking," Carlisle said Thursday, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon. "That trade was a risk worth taking. We all agreed on that. Now, we're at a point where, hey, it's time to move on."
There were some concerns even at the time of the trade about Rondo's shooting woes mucking up Dallas' whirring, pace-and-space offense, or his ball dominance and over-dribbling making him an incompatible backcourt mate for Monta Ellis.
But he and Carlisle clashing the way they did, or Rondo having such a difficult time adjusting and ultimately sulking his way out of town was a tough outcome to plan for.
Even with all his struggles, there was a sense the Mavericks wouldn't quite know whether they'd made the right decision until they saw how Rondo performed in the playoffs, a stage that's typically brought out the best in him.
After his putrid performance in a Game 2 loss to the Houston Rockets, the Mavs finally appeared ready to cut their losses. Rondo was ruled out indefinitely with an unspecified back injury, and Carlisle said he didn't expect the embattled point guard in a Dallas uniform again.
"Everybody owns it," Carlisle said Thursday. "This is all part of a franchise that's accountable. The one thing I love about (team president) Mark Cuban is that he is the ultimate example of accountability. When he has made mistakes in the past, he jumps up and admits them and he owns them.
"Look, you can't be in this business as long as he has - and I've been in it longer - and not make mistakes. Mistakes are how you learn."
