Rajon Rondo Returns in Win Over Toronto Raptors

Rajon Rondo had 20 assists in the Boston Celtics 107-89 victory over the Toronto Raptors yesterday afternoon at the Boston Garden.  It was his first game back from the sprained ankle he suffered Wednesday night against the Utah Jazz.  Rondo claims that he is clearly less than 100% but no one would have guessed that yesterday.  He was dominant the whole game and aside from a few turnovers, he was his usual All-Star self.

I really don’t think people understand how difficult it is to accumulate 20 assists over one basketball game.  A majority of the credit certainly has to go to his Celtics teammates, in particular Jason Terry and Paul Pierce, who were consistent the entire game.  But what Rondo does is truly special.  He finds his teammates in the best positions for them to be successful.  Very rarely do you see him set up another guy for a poor shot attempt.  His unselfishness is also second to none as he never counts himself as the first option on offense.  He is a facilitator first and is quickly building a special season to his resume.  He is currently averaging over 13 assists per game, and even though that number will most likely decline as the season wears on, it is still a ridiculously high number and is truly indicative of how he has been playing as of late.

The Celtics dominated the Raptors from the start and Rondo had his way with Jose Calderon from the opening tip.  The Celtics clearly missed Rondo during Thursday night’s loss to Brooklyn and he immediately paid dividends in his return on Saturday.

 

Rob Lunder covers the Boston Celtics for Rant Sports.  For all Celtics news go to the team homepage on Rant Sports.  Follow him on Twitter @rlunder18