Rondo enjoys Garden party
Whether he likes it or not, Rajon Rondo will be the center of attention whenever he comes back to town for the rest of his career. Last night was no exception. The man who helped guide the Celtics to their 2008 championship and was equally brilliant as he was enigmatic for his eight-plus seasons in Boston was back again last night, his No. 9 patrolling the Garden parquet in a third jersey in his third trip to his first home since the January 2015 trade that sent him out.
And when it comes to Rondo, his presence in Boston as a visitor always evokes a reaction, and it probably always will.
Fans gave the new Chicago Bull a loud mix of cheers and boos as he was introduced, a group of fans up in the rafters regularly heckled him with “Rondo!” chants, and he certainly got an earful from the sellout crowd when a critical jumper late in the fourth quarter fell way short for an airball on the way to the 107-100 Celtics win.
As he does, Rondo — who says he looks forward to his visits to Boston now — embraced it all.
“Just the fans,” the point guard said when asked what he looks forward to the most out of his Boston trips. “The energy the crowd brings, basically. Great fans.
“Great fans,” he emphasized again.
In his previous visits to Boston, his performances have almost become as much of a story as his mere presence.
Two weeks after he was traded from the Celtics to Dallas, Rondo returned with the Mavericks and dropped in a spectacular 29-point performance in a win over the C’s. Last season, back in town with the Sacramento Kings, he posted 14 points and 15 assists in a loss.
This time, nothing particularly extraordinary happened — Rondo had 12 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in the loss — but his presence seems to be good enough at this point.
On a larger scale, now on his third team in less than two seasons, Rondo is starting to look more like a journeyman than the franchise cornerstone some thought him to be in his Celtics days.
But so far, it seems like he’s enjoying his new red and white threads, and in particular, playing with the likes of Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler.
“I feel like I’ve had a pretty good fit the last couple years, but this team in particular, a lot of unselfish guys on the team and we play for one another,” Rondo said. “It’s a good fit.”