On July 19, 2017, Rondo signed a one-year, $3.3 million contract with the New Orleans Pelicans. On October 8, 2017, he was diagnosed with a sports hernia. Two days later, he underwent surgery and was ruled out for four to six weeks. He made his debut for the Pelicans on November 13, 2017, against the Atlanta Hawks, recording two points and two assists in about five minutes in the first half. He made his first start of the season two days later, recording four points and eight assists in 14 minutes in a 125–116 loss to the Toronto Raptors. On December 10, 2017, he recorded 13 points and 18 assists in a 131–124 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. On December 27, 2017, he set a franchise record with a career-high 25 assists in a 128–113 win over the Brooklyn Nets. He broke Chris Paul’s mark with his 22nd assist and became just the seventh player in NBA history to reach 25 assists in a game, joining Scott Skiles, John Stockton, Jason Kidd, Kevin Johnson, Nate McMillan and Isiah Thomas. On January 8, 2018, Rondo had 12 points and 15 assists in a 112–109 win over the Detroit Pistons. He had nine of his assists in the first quarter, tying a franchise record. On February 10, 2018, he recorded 25 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds in a 138–128 double overtime win over the Brooklyn Nets. In the Pelicans’ regular season finale on April 11, 2018, Rondo had 19 points and 14 assists in a 122–98 win over the San Antonio Spurs. In Game 1 of the Pelicans’ first-round playoff series against the Portland Trail Blazers, Rondo tied a franchise record with 17 assists to go with eight rebounds and six points in a 97–95 win. In Game 2, Rondo had 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in a 111–102 win. In Game 4, Rondo had 16 assists, as the Pelicans completed a first-round sweep of the Trail Blazers with a 131–123 victory. In the second round against the Golden State Warriors, Rondo had 21 assists in Game 3, the Pelicans’ only win before being eliminated in five games.