If Rondo doesn't show up we won't beat the Heat

[PseudoElite]

Pretty simple really, he stunk up the floor today in Game 1.

I've already given up on the bench, they are horrible. It's up to the starters.

It's Rondo or bust, book it.

PS: What horrendous refereeing. It didn't cost us the game, but it was atrocious.

[Celticsfan336]

Yup. I made a thread a week ago saying Rondo would be the best the player in the series.

Well today, he made me look like a fool and made Celtics fans frustrated because we thought that type of rondo was behind us.

[Senninsage]

Even without rondo showing up tonight, we clearly had a legitimate shot to win this game. We missed some great shots, from some of our best shooters, there were Pierces 2 early first quarter ball off shoot turnovers, leading to easy Miami transition points.

But, still, amidst all of this, we still had a legitimate shot to win this game, the refs robbed us of that shot. I don't care what anyone says. This is a 4 quarter game. The Celtics, in that 3rd quarter, were making up for their mistakes in the first half, and the refs hammered the celts with a vicious bs flagrant call on Jermaine O'neal, that really stifled our momentum, giving the Heat a larger lead to work with heading into the 4th.

These things are significant. Rondo's play, when he plays amazing, is a boost, but that wasn't the primary reason we lost today's game. Not in the least.

[snively]

This is ridiculous.  The Rondo that played today wasn't at his best but he was still a strong positive force. He was excellent defensively, on the boards and very effective generating quality offense for us in transition. 

He had some bad passes trying to force it in our chaotic rally attempt and a poor shooting night, but if we had him for an extra 10 minutes, we probably win the game.

[PseudoElite]

He had 0 assists in the first half and we were down by 15, you really think there isn't a link?

Also in the 4th quarter the C's had several chances at coming back but Rondo kept fumbling the ball.

It wasn't all Rondo's fault, but he has to take a LOT of the blame today.

[CelticSteve]

It's simple. Rondo is scared. He is scared to shoot. He forgot one of his most potent weapons, the runner. He has lost all credibility in the half court set when he drives. The defense knows he doesn't want to shoot and they play the pasing lane or force a difficult layup. He doesn't even need to shoot from outside, the runner solves 90% of is problem. RONDO- SHOOT THE RUNNER!

[snively]

He had 0 assists in the first half and we were down by 15, you really think there isn't a link?

Also in the 4th quarter the C's had several chances at coming back but Rondo kept fumbling the ball.

It wasn't all Rondo's fault, but he has to take a LOT of the blame today.

The train went off the rails when Rondo went out.  Went from a tight slugfest to a Miami blowout.  It became far more competitive when he came back in.  His turnovers at the end were unfortunate, but his overall game was solid.

[PseudoElite]

He had 0 assists in the first half and we were down by 15, you really think there isn't a link?

Also in the 4th quarter the C's had several chances at coming back but Rondo kept fumbling the ball.

It wasn't all Rondo's fault, but he has to take a LOT of the blame today.

The train went off the rails when Rondo went out.  Went from a tight slugfest to a Miami blowout.  It became far more competitive when he came back in.  His turnovers at the end were unfortunate, but his overall game was solid.

Rondo wasn't a complete bust today but his negative outweighed his positive.

He was allowing horrible players like Bibby and Chalmers to match up with him well.

CANNOT HAPPEN. It's been said over and over again, the Celtics have a huge advantage in the PG spot and if they don't capitalize on it then we can kiss this series goodbye.

Rondo has to have a minimum of 10 assists a game, no excuses.

[mc34]

Rondo didn't just "not show up" today. From the beginning of the game you could tell he was pressing a bit, looking for his shot too much instead of just being Rondo. Then he got into foul trouble, didn't play almost the entire second quarter, which was the quarter where we got completely slaughtered. Rondo came back in, and we started getting back to what we were used to. He did have some turnovers during our fourth quarter run that stuck out, but its not like Rondo played one of those duds where he just doesn't show up and plays passively.

[Celticsfan336]

He had 0 assists in the first half and we were down by 15, you really think there isn't a link?

Also in the 4th quarter the C's had several chances at coming back but Rondo kept fumbling the ball.

It wasn't all Rondo's fault, but he has to take a LOT of the blame today.

The train went off the rails when Rondo went out.  Went from a tight slugfest to a Miami blowout.  It became far more competitive when he came back in.  His turnovers at the end were unfortunate, but his overall game was solid.

no no no no.
sure, paul and kg werent hitting shots, but rondo lost the ball way to many times and didnt make good decisions.

he wasnt aggresive, and bibby actually outplayed him in the first quarter.

[JT11]

He had 0 assists in the first half and we were down by 15, you really think there isn't a link?

Also in the 4th quarter the C's had several chances at coming back but Rondo kept fumbling the ball.

It wasn't all Rondo's fault, but he has to take a LOT of the blame today.

Well, I think that's a bit of a push because Rondo wasn't on the floor for a large portion of the first half. Now, I'm not saying he's blameless - I'm just saying that the "0 assists" weren't under ordinary circumstances. It is an awful number of assists.