KG on Rondo: “His greatest gift is his greatest curse”

I really am going to miss Kevin Garnett when he's gone.  The man really can be a great interview.  

Today on WEEI, KG spoke on a number of topics… but here's what he had to say on the #1 topic of December so far: Rajon Rondo: 

I’ve grown to understand Shorty. His greatest gift is his greatest curse. We as players try to help him to understand that. Me, more or less, I see a lot of myself in him. I’m not as cocky as he is. I like to actually set aside ego when I step on the court and let the play do the talking.

Shorty’s very smart but he’s also very stubborn. Nonetheless, with all that said and done, talking to him, I see the maturity, I hear the maturity in him wanting to be better. That’s what you want from your young guy. You want your young guy growing. You want your guy to always be in a sense to where he’s understanding that he’s the future. I think him understanding that, him being confident in that. You hear your name in talks, that’s not what you want to be. Things like that come on for a reason. Just understanding growth and understanding being young. But I love Shorty. I wouldn’t want to play with anybody else.

There is a LOT in what KG is saying there.  

1:  HIs stubbornness is part of his greatest gift.  When it seems like something can't be done… Rondo stubbornly finds a way to get it done.  It's also his greatest curse because he won't let some things go until they get done.  

2:  Rondo has an ego (which we knew) that he needs to set aside more on the court.  Rondo will be the first to tell you he's the best point guard in the league.  

3: Rondo is, in fact, displaying a maturity that is necessary to shed his reputation and become the leader this team clearly wants him to be.  

4: KG likes to call Rondo Shorty. 

This is the season Rajon Rondo proves something.  He either proves he's grown and can assume the role of leader like the team (especially Paul Pierce) wants him to… or he proves he hasn't changed much, in which case we can brace ourselves for more rumors down the road. 

As for the rest of the KG interview, he talks about a lot of things including more on Rondo, the lockout, the schedule, and whether he'll play beyond this year.  You can read the interview here… or you can listen to it here.