Rondo is the Realness

There has been a lot of chatter about Boston adding point guard help for the playoffs - most of it centered around Sam Cassell and a possible buyout in L.A. That sort of speculation is totally understandable whenever there is a second-year point guard manning the controls and the one-dimensional Eddie House backing him up. However, the irony here is that the rumors are heating up while Rondo keeps getting better. A month ago I would have said, yes, Boston needs to add a veteran point guard. But now I don't think that is true, because the man with the E.T. hands is really coming along.

He's showing more confidence, is becoming a vocal leader, is proving to be a true difference-maker on the defensive end, and is now adding a fairly devestating dribble-drive game to his arsenal. It seems like he's making at least one highlight play every game while doing all the "little things" that Boston is going to need in aid of KG, Pierce, and Allen.

Tonight against the Mavericks, Rondo put on one of his most impressive displays yet. Despite being limited to 27 minutes by foul trouble (a combination of a few bad reaches and a couple of terrible calls), Rondo hah the best +/- of either team in Boston's 96-90 win over Dallas, clocking in at +13. He also nabbed an astouding 12 rebounds, despite the limited minutes and being the smallest guy on the court for most of the game. No rebound was bigger than the offensive board he grabbed with 42 seconds left, as Rondo slipped behind Dirk Nowitzki and tore the ball away from the big German on a Pual Pierce miss. Then, when it appeared he had his foot pinned down by a defender, he tossed in an underhand bank shot that looked like something you might try in a game of H-O-R-S-E. It proved to be the game winner and it gave Rondo 14-12-4 for a final line. Not bad.

(Oh, and for the record, I admit that I'm happy to see Rondo playing so well, as I predicted big things for him over the summer.