Rondo, Rondo, Rondo

(Photo courtesy of Steve Neimand)

By: Greg Payne

I was perusing through Mark Murphy's postseason report card and couldn't ignore his take on Rajon Rondo:

RAJON RONDO - B-minus

(16.9 ppg, 9.8 apg, 9.7 rpg, .417 FG%, 2.71 TPG)

What is it with Rondo and his tendency to play down to lesser competition? There’s no doubt that he’s one of the league’s most exciting young point guards. He put that up on a giant marquee by averaging a triple double against Chicago. But then came Orlando, with Rafer Alston and Anthony Johnson, and Rondo’s aggressiveness diminished. With Alston serving his one-game suspension in Game 3, Rondo allowed Johnson to take the lane. Alston later had his moment in Game 7, burying wide open jumpers that staked the Magic to an early lead. Rondo, as a member of the NBA’s all-defensive second team, shouldn’t have allowed either player that kind of latitude. In addition, he became turnover-prone and unable to get his team into the flow. He averaged 5.5 assists and shot 11-for-31 (32 percent) in Games 6 and 7 against the Magic - unacceptable numbers for one of the game’s exciting young talents. He has a long summer of reflection ahead.

While Murphy hit the nail on the head in terms of the matchups that Rondo did botch in the second round, we can't ignore the consistency factor, that ultimately does relate back to those matchups.

Rondo put himself in a very difficult position from Game 1 of the Chicago series by putting in 29 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. He then followed that up with his first triple-double of the postseason in Game 2 of that same series with 19 points, 12 rebounds and 16 assists. Now, to us as onlookers, the bar was set. The bar was set high. Like Olympic Gold Medal high jump, high. From here on out, we expected those colossal numbers from Rondo, and the second he had a string of games that didn't resemble double-digits in every category, it was only a matter of time before the "C" word was dropped. Consistency, consistency, consistency.

So, when games like Game 7 against Chicago (7 points, 5 rebounds, 11 assists) and Game 5 against Orlando (6 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists) came around, we immediately looked down at Rondo. Even though both of those games were wins, had they been losses, we knew where blame would have been assessed.

Another issue that Rondo faced all season, particularly when Kevin Garnett went down, was when and when not to assert himself. While KG's absence thrust Rondo into the position of ambassador to the new "Big Three", it seemed at times that Rondo was unclear as to when he should shoot and when he should pass, particularly at times when getting other teammates going might have been more useful to the overall cause. His coach and teammates stressed that "he had the keys to the car" and "we go as Rondo goes", but it still seemed at times that Rondo wasn't completely confident in throwing the Celtics' engine into gear and taking his teammates for a coastal joy ride. The Celtics hit plenty of pot holes and road blocks along the way, with many of those coming as a result of the routes the driver chose to take.

When it was Rondo's time to shoot, which shot did he dare use? By the end of the playoffs, it seemed like he had passed on the 15-foot shot more times than he took it, and when he drove the lane, it seemed like every time he threw up a floater, it didn't quite seem to float high enough.

Of course, no one dare even utter the possibility that Rondo is expendable under any circumstances. The Celtics would be wise to sign him to a beefy extension this offseason, just so they need not worry about him testing the free agent market next summer, on top of all the other free agent hoopla the league itself will be dealing with. While some might be tempted to look past the inconsistencies Rondo faced this postseason, they could actually be looked at as building blocks, or stepping stones, towards an even greater future. As Bill Simmons writes, we might not expect every young guy to be great his first year, but we do need signs that he's heading for greatness.

If you're headed toward greatness, or even goodness, you're going to show us flashes of your ultimate destiny in your embryonic years. That's just the law. You can't go from "I am doing nothing" to "I'm an All-Star!" unless you're Jamaal Magloire (who immediately went back to nothing). It's a series of baby steps.

Needless to say, the flashes are there, the steps are being taken, and after this season, inconsistencies and all, the future for Rajon Rondo has never looked brighter.