Rondo Driving to the Hoop Less?

[RR9]

So I was just thinking, Rondo used to drive to the basket quite a bit originally back in 07 when we first got the big 3.  He would then attract players and just pop out a pass for the shot.  He did this because he has the fantastic speed to beat most point guards off the dribble - then he stopped.  He's done this less and less...because Doc decided to run the offense less through Rondo or what?  I dunno about you guys, but when he did that in 07, that's how we won the championship in terms of Rondo's role. 

Did Rondo stop doing this less because of fear of injury, or was he turning the ball over too much or what?  Am I imagining this or do other people notice this too?  With Rondo's speed, he should be driving plenty around picks and on isolations.  He may not have a great shot, but he's a pretty darn good finisher at the rim! 

Reminders:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl2dWJwCe_s&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FyV09sdRhw&playnext=1&list=PL58ECB6B3318BB3E5

[Celtics18]

I definitely think Rondo was less aggressive last season than in previous ones due in large part to his season long battle with plantar fasciitis.

[Donoghus]

I think he still does quite a bit of penetration.

Although, at some point I'm sure he's also realized that you don't last long in the NBA driving the lane when you're 6'1" and 170 lbs, either.

[Chris]

I absolutely think self preservation has taken over (and I think he has been told this from the front office as much as he has made the decision himself).  He still takes the ball to the hoop, but he has stopped going up hard all the time, particularly in less meaningful games.

I think if you look back at some of the bigger games, you will see him going to the hoop much harder than just the regular season games that didn't mean as much.  This is because he knows when he goes up there hard, there is a much better chance of him getting hurt than if he kind of flips shots up.  So, he is really just saving himself.  

[soap07]

Part of it is that he can't shoot free throws, so when he gets down there, he's more likely to be fouled - and fouled hard, so he doesn't penetrate as much as he used to. Of course, that's also partially due to his injuries.

[ballin]

He absolutely drives to the hoop less, and that includes big games.

The reason? Either because he's gotten lazy or has false confidence in his still-feeble jumper.

I can't read his mind, so I don't know exactly what the cause is, but if you replaced all of the terrible mid range shots Rondo took this past season with drives to the basket, Rondo would have resembled a better version of his 2007 self, and would have been much more efficient, and possibly even an MVP candidate.

Rondo's decision to sit back and put up bad shots that he can't make is the reason why he had his worst year since 2007.

[BballTim]

He absolutely drives to the hoop less, and that includes big games.

The reason? Either because he's gotten lazy or has false confidence in his still-feeble jumper.

  He gets to the rim more than people think. I think in the Miami series he did as often as Wade or James. 

I can't read his mind, so I don't know exactly what the cause is, but if you replaced all of the terrible mid range shots Rondo took this past season with drives to the basket, Rondo would have resembled a better version of his 2007 self, and would have been much more efficient, and possibly even an MVP candidate.

Rondo's decision to sit back and put up bad shots that he can't make is the reason why he had his worst year since 2007.

  Rondo was hitting his outside shots at a pretty good clip until late in the season. The problem he had this season wasn't shot selection, it was health.

[cman88]

ya, Rondo had a pretty bad season Healthwise...between the his plantar, hamstring, ankle, back, elbow....it definitely limited him IMO

hopefully Delonte has a relatively healthy season, and Avery can come along so that rondo can be healthy for the playoffs

[guava_wrench]

Rondo was scoring option number 4 every game back in 07-08. When opponents had to pick their poison, they picked Rondo and tried to close down Paul, Ray and KG.

I only mention this because there are key games where our opponent focused on not letting him into the lane.

[zerophase]

He doesn't drive because of a couple of reasons: he always gets hurt going to the basket; he can't hit his [dang] free throws; and he thinks his mid range jumper has improved so he doesn't have to.

[mgent]

At the beginning of the season, probably.  I'm not sure if "padding" is the right word, but he was definitely more concerned with getting assists than scoring.  Even when he had a shot at the basket he was dishing it out to KG for the jumper.

Towards the end of the season and into the playoffs he looked more like his old self (although injured).

[Junkyard Dawg]

rondo stopped driving to the hoop in part because teams started to game plan for it.  everyone saw what he did to cleveland in the 09 playoffs and they had to respect him on the offensive end.

but honestly, if you are a celtics fan you'd better hope he drives to the hoop less.  save it for the games that matter, in the mean time develop that jump shot.  there was a game in San Antonio last year when he was lights out with that mid range jumper, i would hope we see a lot more of games like that going forward.

[Bean_town fan]

I think it was a combination of his season long foot injury and I also believe maybe his confidence was down due to his FT%???

Also as it was said, the dude needs to start looking after his bod more carefully.....i don't think he can play with reckless abandon anymore.....

[PosImpos]

He doesn't have lanes open as easily against many teams because they are able to play off of him.

Also, he relies too much on his passing and hardly ever looks to score. 

I think the main reason he avoids going to the hoop, though, is that his free throw shooting sucks and he doesn't want to get battered by contact only to put up a couple bricks at the line.

[BASS_THUMPER]

I definitely think Rondo was less aggressive last season than in previous ones due in large part to his season long battle with plantar fasciitis.

this problem will def take away sum of your game


didnt know he was goin thru this