We Lost Because Rondo Got Hurt

[greenpride32]

Rondo was largely ineffective before he got hurt.  I believe this team is more dangerous with Delonte running the point because he can drive and shoot.  You can not leave Delonte undefended like you can Rondo.

[Celticsfan336]

  Agreed.

[FatjohnReturns]

I think Rondo's injury was a major blow, but I'm not convinced that having a healthy Rondo would have made a difference unless he figured out how to score against the Heat defense.  The reason the team collapsed in the fourth quarter every single game they didn't win in the 3rd (i.e. Games 1, 2, 4, and 5) was that the Big 3 exhausted themselves on both ends of the court for the whole game and then were expected to have enough late in the 4th to maintain or regain a lead. 

The only way Rondo would have made a big difference with that is if he could have taken over offensively for stretches, and he didn't do that in Games 1 or 2, or at the start of Game 3, when he was healthy.

On paper, some of what you say makes sense.  However, we went to overtime you Game 4.  Are you telling me that Rondo's presence wouldn't have accounted for an additional bucket?  Or several additional buckets?  

On top of that, did Miami's defense really look that great, or did it look great when either A) they didn't guard Rondo AT ALL because he couldn't do anything or B) because the Celtic offense stagnated because it couldn't do anything either with an armless Rondo or without him in the game?  

I mean would you be raving about the Boston defense if D-Wade had a dislocated arm and we didn't bother to guard him, thus allowing us to slow down everyone else more effectively?  

Similarly, if D-Wade had a dislocated arm, wouldn't everyone be saying that's why Miami lost?  

I think a healthy rondo is better than a not health rondo but are you really comparing rajon to wade?

And you can't just ignore the 10 quarters he played healthy where, surprise surprise, the heat didnt cover him either.

Until he can make people pay for not covering him this is the defense he will continue to see. LA did it last year and forced him to take the most shots of any celtic in last years finals and now every team is going to do it.

Just the reality of the situation and other teams are smart to do it.

Rondo would have helped but I can't say his health guaranteed us a series win.

No.  I'm not saying that Rondo is as good as Wade.  But the comparison isn't that far off.  In both cases an All Star guard who is a championships contender's most important player would've been out.  If you prefer a Bosh comparison, that's fine. 

The point remains, if the C's had a healthy Rondo, the Heat never get close in Game 4 and the C's likely grind out Game 5.  They may not have guarded him closely in Games 1 and 2; however, they still guarded him.  They didn't in Games 4 and 5.  Moreover, when they didn't guard him at times in Games 1 and 2, he tried to attack the basket.  He all but gave up doing that in Games 4 and 5. 

Finally, if that doesn't convince you, Rondo played 30 minutes tonight of largely bad basketball.  Are you telling me 40+ minutes of a healthy Rondo wouldn't have made the difference in a close game? 

"I'm not saying that Rondo is as good as Wade.  But the comparison isn't that far off.  In both cases an All Star guard who is a championships contender's most important player would've been out."

Lol I love Celticsblog

[soap07]

"I'm not saying that Rondo is as good as Wade.  But the comparison isn't that far off.  In both cases an All Star guard who is a championships contender's most important player would've been out."

Lol I love Celticsblog

Haha, me too.


Seriously, Rondo played Games 1 and 2. The Celtics got beat handily both times. The only reason the Celtics lost was because the Heat were better.

[pearljammer10]

Rondo didnt look right from the start. He was jogging around... I think there was something more going on than just the elbow issue, he just didnt look right.

[ejk3489]

I think Rondo's injury was a major blow, but I'm not convinced that having a healthy Rondo would have made a difference unless he figured out how to score against the Heat defense.  The reason the team collapsed in the fourth quarter every single game they didn't win in the 3rd (i.e. Games 1, 2, 4, and 5) was that the Big 3 exhausted themselves on both ends of the court for the whole game and then were expected to have enough late in the 4th to maintain or regain a lead. 

The only way Rondo would have made a big difference with that is if he could have taken over offensively for stretches, and he didn't do that in Games 1 or 2, or at the start of Game 3, when he was healthy.

On paper, some of what you say makes sense.  However, we went to overtime you Game 4.  Are you telling me that Rondo's presence wouldn't have accounted for an additional bucket?  Or several additional buckets?  

On top of that, did Miami's defense really look that great, or did it look great when either A) they didn't guard Rondo AT ALL because he couldn't do anything or B) because the Celtic offense stagnated because it couldn't do anything either with an armless Rondo or without him in the game?  

I mean would you be raving about the Boston defense if D-Wade had a dislocated arm and we didn't bother to guard him, thus allowing us to slow down everyone else more effectively?  

Similarly, if D-Wade had a dislocated arm, wouldn't everyone be saying that's why Miami lost?  

I think a healthy rondo is better than a not health rondo but are you really comparing rajon to wade?

And you can't just ignore the 10 quarters he played healthy where, surprise surprise, the heat didnt cover him either.

Until he can make people pay for not covering him this is the defense he will continue to see. LA did it last year and forced him to take the most shots of any celtic in last years finals and now every team is going to do it.

Just the reality of the situation and other teams are smart to do it.

Rondo would have helped but I can't say his health guaranteed us a series win.

No.  I'm not saying that Rondo is as good as Wade.  But the comparison isn't that far off.  In both cases an All Star guard who is a championships contender's most important player would've been out.  If you prefer a Bosh comparison, that's fine. 

The point remains, if the C's had a healthy Rondo, the Heat never get close in Game 4 and the C's likely grind out Game 5.  They may not have guarded him closely in Games 1 and 2; however, they still guarded him.  They didn't in Games 4 and 5.  Moreover, when they didn't guard him at times in Games 1 and 2, he tried to attack the basket.  He all but gave up doing that in Games 4 and 5. 

Finally, if that doesn't convince you, Rondo played 30 minutes tonight of largely bad basketball.  Are you telling me 40+ minutes of a healthy Rondo wouldn't have made the difference in a close game? 

"I'm not saying that Rondo is as good as Wade.  But the comparison isn't that far off.  In both cases an All Star guard who is a championships contender's most important player would've been out."

Lol I love Celticsblog

What do you think would be a better comparison? Pierce? KG? Do you not think that Rondo is an important player (if not the most important) to our team?

If anything, it's ridiculous to laugh at the notion that a healthy Rondo wouldn't make a difference in this series.

[LB3533]

Rondo wouldn't have helped our 4th quarter scoring woes.

He may have helped been the facilitator so PP doesn't have to distribute and throw difficult passes to Jeff Green....but what may have actually happened would have been a Rondo jump shot after we failed to get Ray free for an open jumper off a screen.

[jdpapa3]

Rondo avg'd 10 assists a game in the first 3 games and averaged 4 in the last 2 games.

Both games could've been changed by 1 or 2 possessions. I think it's very possible we'd be coming back up to Boston with a 3-2 if he were healthy, but we'll never know sadly.

[ManUp]

Definitely, a factor but with the exception of game 3 the Heat were better than us in every facet of the game. You've got to give credit where credit is due. The Heat just killed us. With Rondo we had a chance without him were screwed.

[FatjohnReturns]

After five years in the league he cant make a 15 foot jump shot or free throws with any consistency.Its give teams defending the Celtics a big advantage. Its like playing 4 on 5 on offense.

If you were on the court in Rondos shoes and had the ball every possession in the open court and more than any other player in the half court how many assists would you average? Or how many would Arroyo or West have had if they dominated the ball every possession like Rondo.

Sorry Rondo is vastly overrated on this board and even if healthy we still lose just like Games 1 and 2. Rondos JV offensive game is part of the problem with this team and it contributes to the offensive stagnation we see in the half court.

[jdpapa3]

After five years in the league he cant make a 15 foot jump shot or free throws with any consistency.

You've mentioned the 2 things he doesn't have in his game. You can point out 2 things in most people's games and make them look bad, but Rondo has carried the big 3 more in recent days than vice versa.

[ejk3489]

After five years in the league he cant make a 15 foot jump shot or free throws with any consistency.Its give teams defending the Celtics a big advantage. Its like playing 4 on 5 on offense.

If you were on the court in Rondos shoes and had the ball every possession in the open court and more than any other player in the half court how many assists would you average? Or how many would Arroyo or West have had if they dominated the ball every possession like Rondo.

Sorry Rondo is vastly overrated on this board and even if healthy we still lose just like Games 1 and 2. Rondos JV offensive game is part of the problem with this team and it contributes to the offensive stagnation we see in the half court.

He can't make a 15 foot jump shot? Really? Because he shoots about 41% from that area, which is better than the league average (39%)  for point guards. And it's not like it's a small sample size either...he shot about 200 times from 16-23ft.

And I'd guess that Arroyo/West wouldn't average anywhere near 11 assists a game simply because they aren't as good as Rondo. Have you seen how much the Big 3 struggle to score when he isn't in the game?

For every person who overrates him on this board, I'd say there are at least 5 more people who underrate him. Some people on here act as if any point guard in the league could do what Rondo does...even the national media gives him more love than Celtics fans do.

[FatjohnReturns]

After five years in the league he cant make a 15 foot jump shot or free throws with any consistency.

You've mentioned the 2 things he doesn't have in his game. You can point out 2 things in most people's games and make them look bad, but Rondo has carried the big 3 more in recent days than vice versa.

A point guard who cant shoot is kinda one-dimensional don't you think?

Your point has to be able to shoot to keep defenses honest and keep driving lanes open.

The two reasons his assists are high is (1) He is effective in the open court especially with his speed (2) He dominates the basketball on every possession.

Several times tonight RM was commenting on Bibby or Chalmers just walking away from guarding him because the Heat are not afraid of him scoring.This was also the case with Kobe guarding Rondo in the Finals last year.

[jdpapa3]

I don't think Rondo is one dimensional. He hurts you on the fast break, can penetrate and score, penetrate and kick, throw precision passes to cutters or guys off the screen. Look at how many gross turnovers we had tonight on those semi-breaks. It's much simpler when the directive is to simply get the ball to Rondo.

[PosImpos]

I don't think Rondo is one dimensional. He hurts you on the fast break, can penetrate and score, penetrate and kick, throw precision passes to cutters or guys off the screen. Look at how many gross turnovers we had tonight on those semi-breaks. It's much simpler when the directive is to simply get the ball to Rondo.

No, it's not fair to call Rondo one-dimensional.  That doesn't mean he isn't a seriously limited player.  He is a point guard who can make tough passes, score in transition or when openings are created by ball movement, and defend well, creating turnovers and turning them into baskets.  He can't, however, create his own shot or get to the line with any consistency.  As the primary ball hander, that makes him limited.