Rondo is the MAN!!!!!

[Red2]

funny you should talk about delonte like that. I too have been feeling that he's become a bit of a punk. Not sure if that's related to his mental illness or if that's just him wanting to beat us since we traded him. I always loved him when he was with us and after he was traded I was hoping we could get him back ( along with gomes). Remember how he constantly changed his look? It's almost like he has multiple personalities? IF we get to face the cavs the backcourt matchup is going to be key. I believe that Pierce will elevate his game against Lebron . Cleveland has a size advantage and a lot more depth than we do but of all the teams in the playoffs we have the most heart so even though it looks like Cleveland would be a mortal lock to beat us and perhaps sweep us I think we would give them a very tough series. Based on last night, the Magic dont' seem to have the intangible that's needed to win a title

[MyInsatiableOne]

What did Tommy say about Delonte? I don't know if I believe that about him. I remember Doc coming out and really being concerned for him and all that as well as most of the players.

I think when it comes to the games Delonte is a gamer and he really locks in to the game and blocks out all that stuff. I don't think thats a bad thing.

I don't have any problem with players on opposing teams celebrating and congratulating their players and all that but I can't stand when they do all the stuff for the cameras to get attention. That is where the Cavs crossed the line IMO. You shouldn't be celebrating like that in front of cameras and all that. It's just not cool, you gotta be humble about it and act like you've been there. Teams don't forget ish like that.

They've done it all year, though, preening and posing for the cameras and fans...besides how unclassy and cheap it is, it just looks super lame!

[GreenDreamer]

he had a good game no question but IMO he still has a ways to go in terms of decision making and maturity. He tried to make several really difficult passes in the lane to Perk, ray and baby that he should never have thrown. In game one he did the same thing and that bad bounce pass to ray at the end of the game was a critical turnover. When he makes the simple play ( penetrate and dish) he's great but when he tries to be a hot dog it usually results in a turnover. I also am not a fan of his defense when he plays behind the man or fails to get over the pick. Rondo switching off of Gordon in game 6 and leaving Pierce ( who was completely unprepared for the switch) was a critical mistake and cost us that game and last night he allowed alston to get into the paint a few times that he could have prevented. His focus isn't always there as in the first half of game one. So as great a talent as he is I see a lot of room for improvement,

Seriously, I am getting sick of this garbage. Rondo is making some difficlut passes to them? They aren't "expecting" them? Well here's an idea: START EXPECTING THEM.

I was trained that if a guy made an accurate, catchable pass to you where you were in a position to do something with it, and you didn't catch it, that it was YOUR FAULT, not the fault of the guy passing the ball. I love Ray, but he has had his head up his ass on some of these passes that Rondo is making him. Two times in the last three games Rondo has bullseyed him under the basket where all Ray had to do was catch the damn ball and lay it in, and Ray did not do that. That's Rondo's fault?

1. Pass was accurate... check

2. Pass was catchable.... check

3. if he caught the pass he would have had an easy score.... check

What else is there? Magic Johnson had one simple rule: "I pass you the ball, you catch the ball". If his man did not catch the ball, Magic was going to let him know about it, and Magic was uncorking some passes that made the ones that Ray botched look like layup line stuff.

Perk? I actually have a private nickname for him "Perpetually Unready Perk". Why? Because he seems to be constantly surprised that the ball was being passed to him in situations where he is open underneath the basket. Give me a break, man. I love the guy's defense, and his post game has grown by leaps and bounds, but his offensive awareness is not good at all. He gets caught going for offensive rebounds ebcause "he thought that Rondo was going to shoot it". Newsflash, Rondo has shot the ball when he has actually shot it, and not untill then.

It would also be nice if Perk saw fit to actually anticipate some of the passes and step towards the hoop to reduce teh chances of teh defense recovering. Rondo will drive in there, draw Perk's defender away, dump the ball down to Perk.... and Perk then takes his two steps in to try and dunk the ball. Here's an idea, get going towards the hoop so that when Rondo passes it you can either dunk it or lay it up immediately. Don't even get me started about his hands, which are often down by his sides when Rondo is on his way in. There is NO excuse for that. Big Baby may be vertically challenged, but at least he stays engaged and focused when Rondo is nearby him most of the time. That sick no look pass that Rondo slipped into against the Bulls was a great example of that. he fooled EVERYONE in the building with that... except Big Baby. Would Rondo even have thought of trying that with Perk? Hell no!!! K.G. and Leon are also great at staying locked in on him, knowing that he is liable to slip a pass into them at any time, unfortunately they can't play now.

This mollycoddling of these dudes has to stop. They are playing with a point guard who possesses ELITE passing skills, yet who has to dial it down to 3 out of 10 half of the time because they aren't "expecting the pass". Well start expecting it!!!!

[humblebum]

Ya, I here you to a certain extent GreenDreamer but I do think that Rondo is "forcing" passes in there a bit. I can live with that personally because I believe a guy like Rondo needs to have the leeway to make risky passes. It makes him that much more dangerous and it keeps the defense honest even if it doesn't end up in a bucket. Rondo sends the message that he can get a pass into ANY window, regardless of how small or impossible it might seem. That keeps the defense on notice.

I also agree that Ray and Perk have been caught off guard on a number of occasions by Rondo passes. That's not really excusable but at the same time Rondo rarely tends to up the degree of difficulty on his passes beyond a 7 out of 10, if you catch my drift. That's why his assist to turnover ratio is so solid. When he throws those 8's, 9's and 10's difficulty level passes Ray and Perk will often be caught off guard.

All in all I think that the blame is somewhat equally shared between the passer and the receiver... it truly takes two to tango in this area of basketball. Both players need to be on the same page and part of the passers resonsiblity is to assess whether the potential receiver is ready. Sometimes Rondo is simply more "visionary" and "creative" and thus Perk and Ray are literally a step or two or three behind mentally. They can improve there by being more focused but I think that both players are generally solid pass catchers with Perk still have a ways to go to getting to Glen Davis level... and I'm not sure he'll ever get there. Davis has about as soft a pair of hands with solid coordination as you'll see out of big man.

[GreenDreamer]

Ya, I here you to a certain extent GreenDreamer but I do think that Rondo is "forcing" passes in there a bit. I can live with that personally because I believe a guy like Rondo needs to have the leeway to make risky passes. It makes him that much more dangerous and it keeps the defense honest even if it doesn't end up in a bucket. Rondo sends the message that he can get a pass into ANY window, regardless of how small or impossible it might seem. That keeps the defense on notice.

I also agree that Ray and Perk have been caught off guard on a number of occasions by Rondo passes. That's not really excusable but at the same time Rondo rarely tends to up the degree of difficulty on his passes beyond a 7 out of 10, if you catch my drift. That's why his assist to turnover ratio is so solid. When he throws those 8's, 9's and 10's difficulty level passes Ray and Perk will often be caught off guard.

All in all I think that the blame is somewhat equally shared between the passer and the receiver... it truly takes two to tango in this area of basketball. Both players need to be on the same page and part of the passers resonsiblity is to assess whether the potential receiver is ready. Sometimes Rondo is simply more "visionary" and "creative" and thus Perk and Ray are literally a step or two or three behind mentally. They can improve there by being more focused but I think that both players are generally solid pass catchers with Perk still have a ways to go to getting to Glen Davis level... and I'm not sure he'll ever get there. Davis has about as soft a pair of hands with solid coordination as you'll see out of big man.

I think that the passer's responsibility is a VERY small part. You can't be passing the ball into the back of a guy who is setting a pick, but in just about everything else the burden is on the target - provided that the pass in accurate. Magic used to come down the court and not look at the guy he was going to pass to once, and then BAM. He relied on, and EXPECTED, his teammates to be aware of what was going on. It is hard to throw a no look pass when you are looking at someone.

I agree with you on the fear factor element. Personally I like that Rondo keeps it simple and efficient most of the time, but you want to put the fear in the other team that showtime could appear at any moment. His teammates just need to get better at realizing this. Cheers

[humblebum]

Ya, I really do hear what you're saying but I'm sure that Magic had plenty of guys fumbling his higher difficulty level passes around. I really feel that Perk and his other teammates will improve at this as Rondo continues to push the envelope with his passes. Right now those types of passes are more of a rarity from Rondo so they're still unexpected. But it takes time for teammates to develop that level of expect the unexpected from Rondo. Rondo's really only beginning to tap his potential in these higher level passing areas.

But like I said, he needs to keep making those passes because they really have the potential to devastate an opponent from a psychological POV. There's nothing worse as a defender to be completely unable to predict the moves of your opponent. Frankly, when Rondo's at his best that's exactly what he is: Unpredictable, and when you couple that with his speed, athleticism and fearlessness it's Awe-some. He's gotta be a top 5 player just from the perspective of "fun to watch," for this very reason.

[Dave_From_NB]

Perk? I actually have a private nickname for him "Perpetually Unready Perk". Why? Because he seems to be constantly surprised that the ball was being passed to him in situations where he is open underneath the basket.

I don't discount your comments about his readiness. But I often see Rondo trying bounce passes to Perk, and I'm thinking to myself (or yelling at the tv) that there is no way in hell Perk is going to pick up that pass, it's an automatic turnover. There are some things which just can't happen, dunk lobs to Davis aren't going to work in the same manner they do with KG, and from the same respect there are passes which some players just aren't going to be able to grab with any degree of success. I agree that players need to be ready, but Rondo needs also to be realistic about chances of success. Because teams won't worry about the brilliant passes when most times it's resulting in a turnover rather than a score.

[DorfonCeltics]

You shouldn't be celebrating like that in front of cameras and all that. It's just not cool, you gotta be humble about it and act like you've been there. Teams don't forget ish like that.

This is exactly what we were accused of last year. When you are the best team in the league (which the Cavs are) often confidence comes across as arogance. You guys don't remember Eddie on the bench last year?

[GreenDreamer]

Perk? I actually have a private nickname for him "Perpetually Unready Perk". Why? Because he seems to be constantly surprised that the ball was being passed to him in situations where he is open underneath the basket.

I don't discount your comments about his readiness. But I often see Rondo trying bounce passes to Perk, and I'm thinking to myself (or yelling at the tv) that there is no way in hell Perk is going to pick up that pass, it's an automatic turnover. There are some things which just can't happen, dunk lobs to Davis aren't going to work in the same manner they do with KG, and from the same respect there are passes which some players just aren't going to be able to grab with any degree of success. I agree that players need to be ready, but Rondo needs also to be realistic about chances of success. Because teams won't worry about the brilliant passes when most times it's resulting in a turnover rather than a score.

Perk needs to wake up and start anticpating things on teh offensive end. his thinking process is glacial in that regard. he is good at things which he has prcaticed 100,000 times like his hook shot and fall away in teh post, but bang/bang plays are a serious weak point.

The number 1 reason that he has these issues is that he stands there with his hands down by his side. That is UNACCEPTABLE. Rondo should not have to eyeball this guy and basically let him, and the defense, know that he is going to pass to him. Keep your hands ready to receive a pass. k.G., Leon and baby do that, and there is NO reason that Perk shouldn't as well. He has some very bad habits in this regard, and needs to be broken of them. If he does, then he will be a much more effective option on the offensive end.

A lot of these passes aren't "brilliant" passes, by the way. They are routine dump downs that every point guard in teh league makes, and Perk doesn't catch them. Rondo is also very hesitant to throw a non bounce pass to Perk, because of his inability to catch a straight pass consistently.

[Zin5]

7/19 shooting, 0/3 from three, 18 assists off of his team (specifically Eddie House) getting hot. And I remember at least one play where he fought off Scalabrine for a rebound. The team seems to be letting him have them.

[Celtic Esquire]

[MyInsatiableOne]

pwnage of Dwight and the Tragic right there...

[Triple M]

He has a real knack at finding not only the open man but at the right time. he has already had assist games of 16, 16, 18(tonight) and the 19 assist game with no TO's tying an NBA record. In 9 games almost a third of the playoff games he played last year and he is already over 100 assist. In fact he is only a game or 2 from getting his 300th Playoff assist I'm not sure but he has to be one of the youngest players to reach that.

[Avalanche]

“I just didn’t come out and play with great passion,” Rondo said of his listless play in the first half of Game 1. “And it was too late when I did get it back. I’ll never do that again.”

“I wanted to attack them and put them on their heels,” he said.

I love the "i'll never do that again" ... he still makes mistakes but man hes a great player

[Zin5]

rondowned_medium_medium.gif

I'm personally a much bigger fan of "RAJOWNED" than "RONDOWNED". It might not be pronounced correctly but it's so much easier to say.

[Joyeuse]

The things he does for this team just keep piling up. Now he has gotten Rafer Alston suspended! He's just THAT GOOD.