Image via WikipediaLOS ANGELES – When Oscar Robertson was 23 years old he averaged 30.8 points, 11.4 assists and 12.5 rebounds for the Cincinnati Royals. That was in 1961-62.Since then, players such as Jason Kidd have turned the triple-double into a monogram, even though 11 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists is sometimes an artificial feat by a player who always possesses the ball.
Rajon Rondo had 18 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in Boston's 103-94 Game 2 victory Sunday, the Lakers' second home playoff loss in eight series, and possibly a Finals-changing development, considering that the Celtics and Lakers are tied 1-1 with Games 3-4-5 in Boston.
Those who saw what he did to the Lakers must realize the helplessness of numbers, and the power of Rondo.
Derek Fisher uncoils for the customary 3-pointer to the solar plexus, and Rondo does what you never see anyone do. He sneaks in from behind and blocks it.
Kobe Bryant thinks he has saved a ball on the sideline and Rondo moves in – he must have a silencer on his shoes, because no one seems to hear him coming. He gets inside Bryant and steals the ball, and then absorbs Bryant's fifth foul, even though nobody without a whistle actually saw one.
And the Lakers, stretched uncomfortably by Ray Allen's record-breaking threes, give Rondo's clunky shot all the room they can with 1:50 left. Rondo bangs it home to put Boston up five.
If Rondo masters that part, that will be known as competitive imbalance. Blessed with huge hands which dangle at his kneecaps, plus Porsche acceleration and nonstop imagination, Rondo has been the decisive pressure point in all three Eastern series.
But his singular gift might be the knack of seeing plays quicker than anyone else. Pau Gasol blocked a shot on Boston's next possession but did so gently, and didn't snatch the rebound. Rondo did and dumped in the go-ahead layup before anyone could trace his footsteps.
"Getting the loose balls, I think that was a key for me personally," Rondo said, shrugging. "That play on Kobe, I thought he was dribbling extremely high, and I thought I could make a stab on the ball."
So which Laker should guard the 21st player picked in the first round of the 2006 draft?
It is usually Bryant, but in Game 1 Rondo lost Bryant and dived inside for three back-door baskets. Here, he streaked right to the hoop whenever anybody but Bryant guarded him.
But then Allen was open so much, and so unerring, that Bryant eventually had to check him. Not that it matters; Boston's battery of picks means Allen can run his designated Laker into all the furniture.
With 5:43 left, Bryant scored over Allen and the Lakers led by three. They did not score on their next six trips downcourt. The Celtics scored in eight of their next nine, and Rondo got Bryant tangled in Kevin Garnett's screen and flashed right to the hoop before any Laker noticed.
That began the run, and the Celtics ran out of Staples Center before any recounts or appeals.
The Lakers got strafed at the 3-point line but could have overcome it. They were outscored by 10 in the paint (and Rondo had much to do with it) even though they got early fouls on Garnett, Kendrick Perkins and Glen Davis. None fouled out, and the Lakers wasted a precious 39-minute game from Andrew Bynum. He will have only one day of rest before Games 4 and 5.
The ball got to Bryant and stuck there far too much, and the Celtics rarely let him roam to the opposite side. He missed 12 of 20, with five turnovers and only three free throw tries.
"We didn't get the ball often enough to our big guys, or in good enough position," Phil Jackson said.
The Celtics got eight field goals from Paul Pierce in these two games. They got eight rebounds and one blocked shot by Kevin Garnett.
http://www.ocregister.com/sports/rondo-252149-bryant-celtics.html
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