Woj: Garnett's delirium with Rondo's icy resolve

[Kane3387]

Great Article on KG and Rondo by Woj. I think everyone knows that there is a special connection between KG and Rondo. A big brother and little brother relationship. This sheds some light on it.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--celtics-kevin-garnett-and-rajon-rondo-can-put-heat-on-their-heels.html;_ylt=AjcnTa3hhhSQ6.AsOJX14rq8vLYF

From the moment Kevin Garnett marched into the locker room, he dictated the terms of everything: The selflessness, the fever pitch, the way these Boston Celtics played basketball. Rajon Rondo never did love the term "Big Three," because it left someone out, someone who understood that it wouldn't be long until he was the franchise's best player. These were two willful, stubborn spirits, inspiring clashes that were epic, enduring and inevitable.

And then they would return together in the 2010-'11 season, and the dynamic between them had changed. In Garnett's absence, Rondo had become indispensible to the Celtics' success. The way coaches and teammates privately described it, Garnett could no longer dictate to Rondo.

"There were times when they really clashed," Celtics coach Doc Rivers told Yahoo! Sports on Friday night. "But the difference now? They clash and recover. They have an amazing friendship now. But it took time. It took time, and it took trust."

The Celtics accomplished nothing on Friday night, except sparing themselves the humiliation of a sweep. Nothing gets serious unless Boston beats Miami in Game 4 on Sunday, unless this series goes back to Miami for a Game 5 with the teams tied, with pressure on the Heat. Between now and then, the Heat were left to answer questions of how the blend of Garnett's physical and mental warfare has impacted them. They hate talking about him, almost as much as playing against him. Garnett has made himself such an annoyance to the Heat, such an instigator. After two Heat players hit him hard, leveled him to the floor, Garnett didn't get up. He did something else: pushups. Right in the lane, right under the basket, he did eight pushups on his knuckles.

No one does desperate the way Garnett does, and the Celtics know that they'll forever find that balance of Garnett's delirium with Rondo's icy resolve. Garnett can be so hard on young players, but in his heart, he always believes that he's molding, preparing them to compete with him. "Kevin is such a giver," Rivers said. People don't always see that, but for those committed to winning, who care the way he does, they'll all say to a man that he's the greatest teammate that they've ever had.

And after all these years, they share an improbable partnership for these Celtics. For so long, there was a push and pull, a fight for the soul of this franchise. Older players get perspective, and younger ones get perspective. And trust. They build trust. With the season in balance, Rondo grabbed the ball and did what he knew needed to be done with it: Lobbed it in the air, lobbed it high and trusted that it would find its way into Garnett's hands.

Whatever you want to say about Garnett, he's forever found a way to stand up to everything. That's why he was so hard on Rondo, why his disposition demanded that he challenge that ambitious young point guard who dared believe he belonged with the Big Three.