The gym doors are open, the sneakers are laced, and the boys are back. Training camp has now begun in the NBA.
Newly acquired point guard, Rajon Rondo has finally seen his first days as a Sacramento King. Rondo has a heavy load of expectations and pressure to succeed after his stint with the Dallas Mavericks.
“They been doubting me since I got drafted,” Rondo said. “That’s kind of how I always play. I have been doubted my whole life. Regardless, I am blessed to be in the NBA and I love what I do everyday when I wake up and go to work.”
From day one, Rondo has been viewed as a leader and coach on the floor. The reason being is quite obvious. This team has lacked basketball I.Q for a while and Rondo brings that and more to the table.
There were moments where this team would leave defensive assignments, pass the ball before their teammate were in place, and shoot the ball when you needed to kill the clock.
Bringing on this former Kentucky Wildcat will make that problem a thing of the past. Even head coach George Karl is excited to see how good Rondo’s passing abilities truly are.
“Andre’s in my mind, the best passing guard I’ve ever coached and I think Rondo might challenge that,” Karl said. “It’ll be interesting to see what I think about Rondo six months from now.”
Rondo has a full canvas to paint that picture. He once again has a roster that is filled with talent from top-to-bottom, including the team’s star player DeMarcus Cousins.
“You know I told myself when he (Cousins) came into the league, and I talked to KG a couple times, and I told him he will be the best big in the game; and he is the best big in the game” Rondo said after replacing rookie Duje Dukan in Monday’s media day scrum. “Why not play with a guy that can dominate the paint. The game starts inside out and he can control the game in so many different areas.”
Cousins will be entering his sixth season as a Sacramento King. Last year at this time, he was happy to have Collison on his team. But Rondo has brought a special eagerness and enthusiasm to the seasoned big man.
“Just in this short time, I’ve gained a lot of respect for Rajon,” Cousins said. “Dude is a flat-out genius when it comes to basketball. His whole knowledge of the game is incredible. He’s definitely considered a coach on the floor. I’m excited to play with him.”
Players like McLemore, who will play most minutes off the ball, will need to study the versatile court-vision Rondo provides.
McLemore has yet to play with a point guard who can be looked at as a bonafide distributor. The best passer he has played with is Collison, and during that juncture of the season (before Collison got injured), McLemore was flourishing.
Nothing is guaranteed for Rondo but what we do know is that this team is filled with extreme enthusiasm and understands that if they buy into Karl’s system, they could be dangerous.
“Man I haven’t been this excited since the 08′ team in Boston,” Rondo said. “If we can buy into coach Karl’s system, I think we are going to shock a lot of people.”
I think it’s fair to say that Rondo has brought that mental toughness and leadership this team has lacked since the early 2000’s.
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