In the summer of 2007, The Boston Celtics once again became a force in The National Basketball Association when Celtics general manager Danny Ainge made trades to acquire shooting guard Ray Allen from The Seattle Supersonics and Kevin Garnett from The Minnesota Timberwolves. Allen and Garnett would come to Boston and team with forward Paul Pierce to form The Celtics new “Big Three”. In the shadow of these three Hall of Famers stood point guard Rajon Rondo who was given the responsibility of feeding the scoring appetite of these three All-Stars. In 2008, The Celtics were on top of the basketball world once again as they won their 17th NBA Championship. Since that time The Celtics have remained a consistent title contender, but the landscape of the team has changed dramatically. Garnett and Pierce are 36 and 35-years of age respectively while Allen left Boston after last season as a free-agent to take his talents to South Beach to join The Miami Heat. Celtics head coach Doc Rivers knows that basketball is a young man’s game and now The Celtics title hopes rest on the shoulders of the 26-year old Rondo.
This is Rondo’s seventh NBA campaign and each year he has seen his assists totals increase. Rondo is currently averaging 12.9 assists per game game which leads the league. Rondo has never been known for his perimeter game, but he is currently shooting over 50 percent from the field. Rondo started a streak last season with 37 consecutive games of at least 10 assists. The mark is second to former Los Angeles Lakers point guard Earvin “Magic” Johnson who holds the record with 46 consecutive games with 10 or more assists. Rondo’s streak came to an end last month in a loss to The Brooklyn Nets after Rondo was ejected in the first quarter for an altercation with Nets forwards Kris Humphries and Gerald Wallace. Rondo exited the game with only three assists. Rondo came to the aid of Garnett after he took exception to a hard foul that was delivered by Humphries. NBA commissioner David Stern suspended Rondo for two games due to the altercation and he is ready to return to action this evening against The Timberwolves.
Since Garnett arrived in Boston, The Celtics have been one of the tougher teams in basketball as they do not allow themselves to be intimidated and Rondo was carrying out that sentiment against The Nets. When Lebron James left The Cleveland Cavaliers to sign with The Heat in the summer of 2010, Rondo didn’t buy into the hype as he still felt that The Celtics were the team to beat in The Eastern Conference since they had just lost in The NBA Finals to The Lakers. For James’ career, The Celtics have been his toughest playoff competition as James has faced The Celtics four times in the playoffs in some epic battles, but last season’s playoff series between The Heat and Celtics saw some Celtics highlights even in defeat.
The shift of leadership for The Celtics could be seen during last season in the playoffs as for years Pierce has been the one to carry the mantle of “Celtic Pride”. Pierce’s nickname is “The Truth” and for years he has made nothing but big shots for The Celtics. The Celtics gave The Heat all that they could handle in The Eastern Conference Finals, but it was Rondo who took over. In Game 2, Rondo did the impossible by scoring 44 points to go along with 10 assists and 8 rebounds in a 115-111 loss. According to The Elias Sports Bureau, Rondo became the only player to put up those exact numbers in a playoff game. The Celtics lost to The Heat in seven games, but for the series Rondo averaged 20.9 points, 11.3 assists, 6.9 rebounds, and 1.9 steals.
Rondo’s increasing role for Boston is very important this season. With new players on this Celtics roster such as rookie forward Jared Sullinger and veteran shooting guard Jason Terry, it is imperative to have a floor general like Rondo to make it work. The Celtics haven’t put it together as of yet as they have hovered around the .500 mark so far in the early stages of the season. Under Rivers, The Celtics tend to play their best basketball in May and June when it matters the most as they are led by Rondo and grizzled veterans in Pierce and Garnett. Rondo is in the mode of Rivers who was once a tough-minded 14-year NBA point guard that new how to get the job done as well. Rondo has the ability to pass the ball anywhere on the court to his teammates and his awkward shots are tough to defend. Rondo has gone from a guy that appeared to benefit from playing with “The Big Three”, to an extremely confident floor general. The key to The Celtics season revolves around Rondo and he appears to be up for the challenge as the leader of The Celtics.
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