Rajon Rondo scored 21 points and had nine assists to drive the Los Angeles Lakers past the Houston Rockets 112-102 in Game 3 of the NBA Western Conference semifinal playoffs Tuesday night, giving the Lakers the 2-1 series lead.
LeBron James and Anthony Davis combined for 62 points, but Rondo may be the magic piece of the puzzle to help the team win the championship.
Rondo stepped up his shooting, going 8-for-11 from the floor and 3-for-5 from the arc, emerging as the third-highest scoring player of the night. All of Rondo’s stats combined don’t fully illustrate the way he was able to place himself in the gaps of the Lakers' strategy after a rocky first half.
So, why is the team’s third-highest scorer worth mentioning?
After leaving the NBA bubble to undergo surgery on his right thumb, being put in additional quarantine upon return to the bubble and experiencing back spasms, Rondo’s return to playing wasn’t predicted to be nearly as impressive as it was Tuesday.
The Western Conference Semifinals are his first time stepping back on the court since the Lakers lost to the Brooklyn Nets on Mar. 10 before the NBA’s hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Everything happens for a reason. Obviously the man upstairs was talking to me and I had to be still for another moment,” Rondo said in the postgame interview shown on TNT’s Inside the NBA. This was evident as his setbacks stacked against him are now the perfect combination to propel the team forward.
It was a monumental night for Rondo as he achieved a personal record of 1,000 career playoff assists. Award winning Los Angeles Times sports columnist Bill Plaschke wrote, “Playoff Rondo is in the building.”
For the Lakers to be successful it will take more than relying on big players like James and Davis to carry them all the way. Another mark of Rondo’s tact is his awareness of this.
“For the Lakers to be successful it will take more than relying on big players like James and Davis to carry them all the way,” Rondo said in his postgame interview.
The importance of Rondo’s return is not lost on the team’s head coach.
“You know what kind of gamer he is this time of year and he’s been spectacular these last two games,” Frank Vogel said of Rondo in a postgame interview on TNT’s Inside the NBA.
The 14-year league veteran sparked momentum for Los Angeles in the fourth quarter when he hit two consecutive 3-pointers to give the Lakers a 92-85 lead, their biggest of the game.
Davis picked up on this energy and later launched a pass from nearly the opposite end of the court, assisting Rondo for a layup.
Rondo’s unique setbacks and court vision could be important factors in a Lakers championship run.