The legends were true. Playoff Rondo does exist. For the past two years we’ve watched Rondo dribble a ball so hard I was concerned the floor was getting dead spots. We watched him collect assists while his plus minus was a among the worst in the league. We saw players like Caruso play clearly better than him yet be behind him in the rotation. Many of us kept wondering why his role wasn’t being reduced when every stats and eye test was telling you this was a once good player, but nothing more than a veteran leader on his way to the end of a playing career.
We heard vague lines about his “swagger” from Coach Vogel. About his basketball IQ from players. About his veteran leadership. But that didn’t seem to be enough. I think I have a good basketball IQ, but that doesn’t mean I can play in the NBA. Swagger? How do you quantify swagger? Veteran leadership is good, but you can do that from the bench like Dudley. Why are you playing over better players on this roster? How much worse do you have to play to finally be benched. I went into the playoffs hoping for as little Rajon Rondo as possible.
Enter Playoff Rondo
I have no explanation for Rondo’s 180. I’ve heard of playoff Rondo before and I understood that he did play better in the playoffs, but it just seemed senile to assume he’d suddenly be a good player. I had no evidence in the last two years to make me think that would happen. Yet, there he was versus the Rockets in game two. Making key assists, stealing the ball, applying pressure and locking down the guards. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
Because of this playoff run my opinion on Rondo has changed. His championship level play changed my opinion of him as a player for the Lakers. It made all those frustrating regular season games of the past two years worth it. If that’s the player he will be when the games truly matter than I’m all in. I’ll take regular season Rondo as long as it comes with playoff Rondo
Rondo 2021
It sounds like Rondo will opt out and that’s no surprise. He’s on a vet minimum deal so why not see what the market is like? His stick couldn’t be higher. He’s just come off his best performance in several years. A performance that helped the Lakers win a championship. I’m guessing every team vying for a championship saw Rondo’s performance and will at least see they can make a run at him. I think Rondo’s odds of coming back are 50/50. How much are the Lakers willing to spend for Playoff Rondo? Will he just go for biggest contract offer? The Lakers are a great situation and it clearly worked, but money talks. Especially for a player on his final years in the NBA. We’ll see if he makes a return in the Purple and Gold in 2021. I sure hope so.
Lakers Takes 