Why was Rondo on the bench at the end of the game?

[BballTim]

I had went back to DVR to check out the last 7 minutes of the game or so.   Here are some noticeable possessions that involved Rondo.

Between 6:30 & 5:30 remaining, Rondo had two possessions I'd deem poor.  1 was a bad pass that resulted in an out of bounds.  The 2nd was an off-balance floater he tried to take from the left side and bank over Gasol.

With roughly 3:20 remaining, Rondo had another bad possession where they worked the shot clock too long.

With 3:00 remaining,  Rondo had that travel called on him.

With 2:00 remaining, Rondo made a great pass to Perkins who was fouled on the play and converted 1 of 2.

With 1:30 remaining, Rondo missed a jumper what arose out of a slowed down offense set started by a Pierce ISO.

Remainder of the game were that Pierce/ISO stuff we've grown accustomed to.

So I'd say there is some merit that Rondo struggle a bit down the stretch.  He made a couple of bad decisions and seemed to have cooled off.   

Rondo had a heckuva game but I don't think its inaccurate to say that he faultered a bit down the stretch.

  But go back to the dvr for the 2nd quarter where they had bigs setting picks for Rondo near the ft line. How many times did you see them run that play in the 4th quarter?

[Donoghus]

I had went back to DVR to check out the last 7 minutes of the game or so.   Here are some noticeable possessions that involved Rondo.

Between 6:30 & 5:30 remaining, Rondo had two possessions I'd deem poor.  1 was a bad pass that resulted in an out of bounds.  The 2nd was an off-balance floater he tried to take from the left side and bank over Gasol.

With roughly 3:20 remaining, Rondo had another bad possession where they worked the shot clock too long.

With 3:00 remaining,  Rondo had that travel called on him.

With 2:00 remaining, Rondo made a great pass to Perkins who was fouled on the play and converted 1 of 2.

With 1:30 remaining, Rondo missed a jumper what arose out of a slowed down offense set started by a Pierce ISO.

Remainder of the game were that Pierce/ISO stuff we've grown accustomed to.

So I'd say there is some merit that Rondo struggle a bit down the stretch.  He made a couple of bad decisions and seemed to have cooled off.   

Rondo had a heckuva game but I don't think its inaccurate to say that he faultered a bit down the stretch.

  But go back to the dvr for the 2nd quarter where they had bigs setting picks for Rondo near the ft line. How many times did you see them run that play in the 4th quarter?

I'm not talking about the first 3 quarters of the game at all here.

I'm trying to address the fact that, although had a heckuva game, he had his struggles down the stretch.  He made some misguided plays in the offensive end in that 4th quarter.  To say that we lost because we went away from him isn't entirely accurate.

[scoop]

Rondo had plenty of opportunities to make plays. He just didn't. And he wasn't passing the ball early on the possession either; he wasted too many possessions dribbling around aimlessly.

Doc Rivers very rarely calls play from the sideline, he isn't Rick Carlisle.

  In the 2nd quarter they were sending a big out for a screen to get Rondo free into the lane. In the 4th they weren't. When he's dribbling aimlessly he's generally waiting for Ray or Eddie to try and free themselves to get a shot. It, as well as when he gives the ball to Paul and heads to the corner, basically takes him out of the play.

  You can say that Doc doesn't call plays and you might be right, but someone decided to run the offense through Paul and Ray in the 4th and it wasn't Rondo.

Except in the last 3 possessions or so, Rondo had the ball on his hands every time he wanted in the 4th, he was calling the shots. He had a couple of turnovers+a couple of bad missed shots. His decision making was very erratic during the 4th. There were screens, but the Lakers bigs started to drop down and zone. There were a few big/small mismatches, but they weren't able to take advantage of them.

Rondo struggles when the games is less free-wheeling, more half-court centered and defenses tighten up (obviously due to his skill-set as a player), that's what happened today.

[BballTim]

I had went back to DVR to check out the last 7 minutes of the game or so.   Here are some noticeable possessions that involved Rondo.

Between 6:30 & 5:30 remaining, Rondo had two possessions I'd deem poor.  1 was a bad pass that resulted in an out of bounds.  The 2nd was an off-balance floater he tried to take from the left side and bank over Gasol.

With roughly 3:20 remaining, Rondo had another bad possession where they worked the shot clock too long.

With 3:00 remaining,  Rondo had that travel called on him.

With 2:00 remaining, Rondo made a great pass to Perkins who was fouled on the play and converted 1 of 2.

With 1:30 remaining, Rondo missed a jumper what arose out of a slowed down offense set started by a Pierce ISO.

Remainder of the game were that Pierce/ISO stuff we've grown accustomed to.

So I'd say there is some merit that Rondo struggle a bit down the stretch.  He made a couple of bad decisions and seemed to have cooled off.   

Rondo had a heckuva game but I don't think its inaccurate to say that he faultered a bit down the stretch.

  But go back to the dvr for the 2nd quarter where they had bigs setting picks for Rondo near the ft line. How many times did you see them run that play in the 4th quarter?

I'm not talking about the first 3 quarters of the game at all here.

I'm trying to address the fact that, although had a heckuva game, he had his struggles down the stretch.  He made some misguided plays in the offensive end in that 4th quarter.  To say that we lost because we went away from him isn't entirely accurate.

  What you're talking about, though, is a stretch of the game where Rondo's role seems to be to get the ball to Paul or Ray and let them try to score, as opposed to trying to attack the defense.

[BballTim]

Rondo had plenty of opportunities to make plays. He just didn't. And he wasn't passing the ball early on the possession either; he wasted too many possessions dribbling around aimlessly.

Doc Rivers very rarely calls play from the sideline, he isn't Rick Carlisle.

  In the 2nd quarter they were sending a big out for a screen to get Rondo free into the lane. In the 4th they weren't. When he's dribbling aimlessly he's generally waiting for Ray or Eddie to try and free themselves to get a shot. It, as well as when he gives the ball to Paul and heads to the corner, basically takes him out of the play.

  You can say that Doc doesn't call plays and you might be right, but someone decided to run the offense through Paul and Ray in the 4th and it wasn't Rondo.

Except in the last 3 possessions or so, Rondo had the ball on his hands every time he wanted in the 4th, he was calling the shots. He had a couple of turnovers+a couple of bad missed shots. His decision making was very erratic during the 4th. There were screens, but the Lakers bigs started to drop down and zone. There were a few big/small mismatches, but they weren't able to take advantage of them.

Rondo struggles when the games is less free-wheeling, more half-court centered and defenses tighten up (obviously due to his skill-set as a player), that's what happened today.

  I don't think that giving the ball to Paul and heading to the corner is Rondo's call. I don't think dribbling for 5-10 seconds while Ray tries to get free from screens is Rondo's call. It's not that the defense tightens up any more what we're running on offense.

[Donoghus]

I had went back to DVR to check out the last 7 minutes of the game or so.   Here are some noticeable possessions that involved Rondo.

Between 6:30 & 5:30 remaining, Rondo had two possessions I'd deem poor.  1 was a bad pass that resulted in an out of bounds.  The 2nd was an off-balance floater he tried to take from the left side and bank over Gasol.

With roughly 3:20 remaining, Rondo had another bad possession where they worked the shot clock too long.

With 3:00 remaining,  Rondo had that travel called on him.

With 2:00 remaining, Rondo made a great pass to Perkins who was fouled on the play and converted 1 of 2.

With 1:30 remaining, Rondo missed a jumper what arose out of a slowed down offense set started by a Pierce ISO.

Remainder of the game were that Pierce/ISO stuff we've grown accustomed to.

So I'd say there is some merit that Rondo struggle a bit down the stretch.  He made a couple of bad decisions and seemed to have cooled off.   

Rondo had a heckuva game but I don't think its inaccurate to say that he faultered a bit down the stretch.

  But go back to the dvr for the 2nd quarter where they had bigs setting picks for Rondo near the ft line. How many times did you see them run that play in the 4th quarter?

I'm not talking about the first 3 quarters of the game at all here.

I'm trying to address the fact that, although had a heckuva game, he had his struggles down the stretch.  He made some misguided plays in the offensive end in that 4th quarter.  To say that we lost because we went away from him isn't entirely accurate.

  What you're talking about, though, is a stretch of the game where Rondo's role seems to be to get the ball to Paul or Ray and let them try to score, as opposed to trying to attack the defense.

Rondo re-entered the game for the first time in the 4th quarter, with roughly 8 minutes to go.  

He pretty much ran the offense and made mistakes until there was roughly 3 minutes remaining.  I think around the 3 minute mark or so, you see a noticable shift in the way the offense was run.

He had 5 minutes or so where there didn't seem to be any change in his role from the first three quarters.  The stretch you're talking about was only a little over the final 3 minutes.  

Go back and watch.

[scoop]

Rondo had plenty of opportunities to make plays. He just didn't. And he wasn't passing the ball early on the possession either; he wasted too many possessions dribbling around aimlessly.

Doc Rivers very rarely calls play from the sideline, he isn't Rick Carlisle.

  In the 2nd quarter they were sending a big out for a screen to get Rondo free into the lane. In the 4th they weren't. When he's dribbling aimlessly he's generally waiting for Ray or Eddie to try and free themselves to get a shot. It, as well as when he gives the ball to Paul and heads to the corner, basically takes him out of the play.

  You can say that Doc doesn't call plays and you might be right, but someone decided to run the offense through Paul and Ray in the 4th and it wasn't Rondo.

Except in the last 3 possessions or so, Rondo had the ball on his hands every time he wanted in the 4th, he was calling the shots. He had a couple of turnovers+a couple of bad missed shots. His decision making was very erratic during the 4th. There were screens, but the Lakers bigs started to drop down and zone. There were a few big/small mismatches, but they weren't able to take advantage of them.

Rondo struggles when the games is less free-wheeling, more half-court centered and defenses tighten up (obviously due to his skill-set as a player), that's what happened today.

  I don't think that giving the ball to Paul and heading to the corner is Rondo's call. I don't think dribbling for 5-10 seconds while Ray tries to get free from screens is Rondo's call. It's not that the defense tightens up any more what we're running on offense.

That only happens in the last few possessions in close games. The first play it happened this game was when Pierce charged Artest. In the previous one it was that clumsy play that ended with a Ray jumper that Fisher fouled; before, Rondo hold the ball and missed a jumper.

What's your point with Ray trying to get free off screens? That everybody should just stand and watch Rondo? Ray is running off screens every time, it's on Rondo to make decision about if/when/where get him the ball.

[jdub1660]

Sorry I am not going to read through 4 pages of posts, but if someone smarter hasn't already answered the OP's question - Why Rondo was sitting in crunch time? Because he can't hit pressure free throws. When Doc sat him, we were only up by 1. Then LA went up by 1, so they could have easily ran the "Hack-a-Shaq" play, put Rondo at the line, he could have made 1 to tie or miss both and LA could have ran the clock down or made us play the same game.

Rondo was great the whole game. Perk was great. Tony freakin Allen was great this game. Ray...flat out stunk. I started watching last in the 1st quarter when we were down by 10. I huffed and puffed but forced myself to sit down and watch it through. I watched till half time, Rondo was interviewed and answered the BIG question - "How will yall keep this lead and close out the game(unlike what you've done the past handful of games)?" He said be aggressive. And 4th quarter was full of jumpers. Pierce heard Van Gundy bragging about how he's leading the league in 3point %, so he started throwing them up. Eddie hit a couple jumpers and all of a sudden thought he was the hottest thing since hot dogs.
Back to my assessment of effective players - The players that still didn't produce were everyone except Pierce,Perk,Rondo,Tony and KG(given he's still hurt, and even a blind guy could tell) Besides those 5 players, the rest of this team should be up for sale. Trade Ray with a package of bench players not including Tony so we can get a young SF to replace Pierce, a vet pg to backup Rondo, and maybe another big that's better than BBD.

[BballTim]

I had went back to DVR to check out the last 7 minutes of the game or so.   Here are some noticeable possessions that involved Rondo.

Between 6:30 & 5:30 remaining, Rondo had two possessions I'd deem poor.  1 was a bad pass that resulted in an out of bounds.  The 2nd was an off-balance floater he tried to take from the left side and bank over Gasol.

With roughly 3:20 remaining, Rondo had another bad possession where they worked the shot clock too long.

With 3:00 remaining,  Rondo had that travel called on him.

With 2:00 remaining, Rondo made a great pass to Perkins who was fouled on the play and converted 1 of 2.

With 1:30 remaining, Rondo missed a jumper what arose out of a slowed down offense set started by a Pierce ISO.

Remainder of the game were that Pierce/ISO stuff we've grown accustomed to.

So I'd say there is some merit that Rondo struggle a bit down the stretch.  He made a couple of bad decisions and seemed to have cooled off.   

Rondo had a heckuva game but I don't think its inaccurate to say that he faultered a bit down the stretch.

  But go back to the dvr for the 2nd quarter where they had bigs setting picks for Rondo near the ft line. How many times did you see them run that play in the 4th quarter?

I'm not talking about the first 3 quarters of the game at all here.

I'm trying to address the fact that, although had a heckuva game, he had his struggles down the stretch.  He made some misguided plays in the offensive end in that 4th quarter.  To say that we lost because we went away from him isn't entirely accurate.

  What you're talking about, though, is a stretch of the game where Rondo's role seems to be to get the ball to Paul or Ray and let them try to score, as opposed to trying to attack the defense.

Rondo re-entered the game for the first time in the 4th quarter, with roughly 8 minutes to go.  

He pretty much ran the offense and made mistakes until there was roughly 3 minutes remaining.  I think around the 3 minute mark or so, you see a noticable shift in the way the offense was run.

He had 5 minutes or so where there didn't seem to be any change in his role from the first three quarters.  The stretch you're talking about was only a little over the final 3 minutes.  

Go back and watch.

  Sorry, I didn't tape the game. By the way, is the "bad possession" by Rondo where he shot over Gasol the one where he rebounded Sheed's miss and they didn't reset the shot clock even though the ball hit the rim? Because we inbounded the ball with about 4 seconds left on the clock. That seems a little harsh. I'd also bet that the 3:20 possession where they worked the shot clock for too long was one of the plays where they were trying to get the ball to Ray.

[rav123]

Think about how many issues would be solved in the way the C's play, if Rondo could hit a 15 ft. jump-shot.

Just think about it; Think about how our offensive execution would play out, if Rondo could hit a 15 ft. jumpshot.

What would our record be if Rondo could knock-down a mid-range jumper?

We certainly would have won tonight, Had Rondo not traveled late in the game, and instead took and hit a wide open jumpshot, its very likely the C's walk away with the W.

But its year 4 for Rondo, and he still is passing up shots, and driving into traffic and trying to create. He's improved at creating and making things happen, but how much better would he be, and the C's if Rondo could knock down a 15 footer.

I mean, Rondo is an All-Star now, there is no reason for him to still not be able to make a jumpshot.

Now, imagine if he had a jumper. we might be hearing conversations of the Celtics being on pace to get the 96' Bulls record, instead of, "their starting to get old, celtics need some help, etc. etc)

I believe that most of this teams issues as far as play on the court, would disappear if Rondo could hit a 15 footer.

I'm tired of it, Rondo should have a jumper by now!

I he could do it, he would have cost a lot more than $11 Million per. If he could do it, we wouldn't have been able to draft him at #21. If he could do it...

[snively]

Rondo had plenty of opportunities to make plays. He just didn't. And he wasn't passing the ball early on the possession either; he wasted too many possessions dribbling around aimlessly.

Doc Rivers very rarely calls play from the sideline, he isn't Rick Carlisle.

  In the 2nd quarter they were sending a big out for a screen to get Rondo free into the lane. In the 4th they weren't. When he's dribbling aimlessly he's generally waiting for Ray or Eddie to try and free themselves to get a shot. It, as well as when he gives the ball to Paul and heads to the corner, basically takes him out of the play.

  You can say that Doc doesn't call plays and you might be right, but someone decided to run the offense through Paul and Ray in the 4th and it wasn't Rondo.

Except in the last 3 possessions or so, Rondo had the ball on his hands every time he wanted in the 4th, he was calling the shots. He had a couple of turnovers+a couple of bad missed shots. His decision making was very erratic during the 4th. There were screens, but the Lakers bigs started to drop down and zone. There were a few big/small mismatches, but they weren't able to take advantage of them.

Rondo struggles when the games is less free-wheeling, more half-court centered and defenses tighten up (obviously due to his skill-set as a player), that's what happened today.

  I don't think that giving the ball to Paul and heading to the corner is Rondo's call. I don't think dribbling for 5-10 seconds while Ray tries to get free from screens is Rondo's call. It's not that the defense tightens up any more what we're running on offense.

That only happens in the last few possessions in close games. The first play it happened this game was when Pierce charged Artest. In the previous one it was that clumsy play that ended with a Ray jumper that Fisher fouled; before, Rondo hold the ball and missed a jumper.

What's your point with Ray trying to get free off screens? That everybody should just stand and watch Rondo? Ray is running off screens every time, it's on Rondo to make decision about if/when/where get him the ball.

Come on Scoop, Eddie, TA and Rondo run that play the exact same way.  The lead guard holds the ball at the top of the key while Ray works through a variety of screens and fakes either to get open or to act as a decoy to open up a post entry pass.  It usually takes a good 5-8 seconds to execute and the guy with the ball can't move from the spot or the play's busted.  

[cdif911]

I didn't want to dredge through the whole post, but as I was watching, I was thinking he was out for offense b/c the Lakers may hammer him on any drive to the basket, trying to make him hit fts, which he notoriously is bad at - Eddie at least spreads the floor for others in an end of game situation.  As a coach I know leaving my bad FT shooters in at the end, even when they have a ton else to contribute has burned me too many times