Stars and stripes replaced the Green, but Rondo still controls basketball games.

There once was a time when some Townies feared (hoped?) Rajon Rondo wouldn’t make Team USA. Umm, think again. He’s our national team’s starting point guard and a guy everyone on Team USA seems to be gushing about, especially his coach. (CSNNE)

“It starts with Rondo,” said Team USA and Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. “He wants to play defense. And he knows that the people behind him are playing defense, too.”

“He’s looking every single time,” Tyson Chandler said. “For the big man, sometimes you’re guessing, ‘Is he shooting? Should I attack the boards, or is he passing?’ So it’s good to know, he’s looking to pass first.”

“I like playing with Rondo,” Billups said. “He’s a winner. I love playing with winners; guys that know how to play the game. Guys that every possession know what it means.”

Watching Rondo play for Team USA, it’s just the same old dude we’ve come to expect every night. He only had six points, six assists and two rebounds in yesterday’s matinee against France (and France’s Boris Diaw, who looks like he has once again eaten every croissant in his home country), but — as always – there was never a time when he wasn’t in control. Solid double negative. 

Rondo runs the show, points players where they’re supposed to go, blows by whoever tries to defend him and makes players around him better. People wondered how Rondo would adjust to the international game, but I’m sure he was thinking all along, “How’s the international game going to adjust to me?”

[superbutton link="http://www.celticstown.com/forums" title="Forums" image=""]Discuss in our Forums[/superbutton]

All smiles, son.

I’m hoping this quote will bring all “Rondo may not make Team USA!” talks to a quiet death. (Boston Globe)

“He’s unconventionally become an NBA champion and a triple-double guy in this league,’’ Krzyzewski said of Rondo. “The thing that Rondo does is he plays with a will to win, and he just finds ways to have a positive impact on the game. You know, I really like that about him. I thought I developed a really good relationship with him during the week, and his pressure on the ball, defense. But his will to win is something that I truly admire, and we need that.

“Plus, he’s a little bit older — not in age as much — but with experience, because the Celtics have gone so deep and have won one of the recent NBA championships. So, I think we’re very fortunate to have him.’’

Chris Sheridan called Rondo a lock, but also took the time to give him a nice little backhanded compliment. (TrueHoop)

Eric Gordon/Stephen Curry is another obvious bubble situation, with four of the five guard spots seemingly locked up by Derrick Rose, Chauncey Billups, Russell Westbrook and Rajon Rondo (Note to Rondo skeptics: For all his faults, he rebounds better than any guard in the NBA — something that’ll obviously be needed in Turkey.)

Can we please stop talking about all Rondo’s faults? Can we please not talk about his rebounding like it’s the only thing keeping him on the roster? Rondo is a winner, first, foremost and always. Put him in an NBA competition and he’s better than any of those other guards listed. Every single one. He just finished an NBA postseason in which he was arguably the MVP of the entire playoffs. And now we can’t talk about anything but his faults, just because he’s playing in a FIBA competition where the rules are a bit different?

Child please. Outside of Deron Williams, Chris Paul and maybe Steve Nash, Rondo’s the best point guard in the league. Who else would you take instead of him? Rose? Sorry, get out of the first round before we talk about that. Parker? Maybe a few years ago, before he fell off. Billups? Give me Rondo any day of the week and twice on Sundays. Mr. Big Shot might as well be called Mr. “I’m Only 41% likely to hit my next” Shot.

And just because jump shooting isn’t his strong suit doesn’t mean Rondo won’t make an impact on Team USA. He’ll find open shooters. He’ll push the ball at breakneck speed. He’ll force turnover after turnover. He’ll penetrate the defense and show an uncanny ability to find an open man at the perfect time. Just because he’s playing foreigners with a weird-shaped lane doesn’t mean Rondo suddenly lost the ability to play basketball. Want to hear the story of another speed demon who has a suspect jumper but lives with a hunger for dimes and steals? His name’s Ricky Rubio, and he’s done pretty well for himself overseas.

So get off Rondo’s jock for a little while and enjoy. He’ll be in Turkey with Team USA and he’ll make an impact on the team. Rondo isn’t the best shooter in the world, but he never has been. And he always seems to find ways to adapt and make himself a threat. I don’t see why it will be any different just because he’s wearing Red, White and Blue.

Competitors.

Within the next 24 hours or so, four players will be cut from Team USA’s roster. Rajon Rondo might be one of them.

Though Coach K said he “loves” Rondo, Chauncey Billups noted he was highly impressed by Rondo, Jerry Colangelo rated Rondo’s chances to make the Team as “very good, very good,” and Kevin Durant named Rondo as the one player he most looked forward to playing with, speculation remains that Rondo might be among the players cut.

John Schuhmann listed Rondo among seven potential cuts, citing the following reasons. (NBA.com)

Rondo had seven assists on Saturday, but didn’t really distinguish himself. Defensively, he’s exactly what Krzyzewski wants (a ball-hawk), but offensively, the other three point guards in consideration are better suited for the international game. And indications are that both Rose and Westbrook outplayed Rondo over the course of the week.

I saw the scrimmage the other night, and Schuhmann was right. Rondo didn’t distinguish himself. Not at all. But if you surround Rondo with good scorers you could be playing with NBA rules, FIBA rules or Slamball rules and it wouldn’t matter: It’s always good to have a point guard who can distribute. And Rondo is by far the best passer among the players trying out for the national team. There’s a reason Durant wanted to play with him so badly.

By the way, Chris Sheridan named six players likely to get cut and Rondo was not on the list. Let’s hope Sheridan has better psychic powers than Schuhmann.

Chauncey Billups was asked who impressed him during the first couple days of Team USA tryouts. His answer? Rajon Rondo, obviously. (Sports Radio Interviews)

Whether any of the younger players on Team USA have surprised him so far:

“We have only had practice for one day but just yesterday I was like impressed with I thought Rondo was pretty good man.  You get to see him without Kevin, and Paul and Ray.  You get to see him out here playing with some new guys and he is good man.  He is really good.  Derrick Rose was pretty good.  Of course, Kevin Durant was pretty good.  There are a lot of guys that you look at and I see way it is why it is, you know?”

“He is good man. He is really good.” Yeah, no kidding Chauncey.

By the way, people have to stop talking about Rondo as if he’s a product of the Big Three. At this point, he’s better than any one of them. The Celtics went as far as they did in the playoffs in huge part because Rajon Rondo has become one of the NBA’s top players. Not just point guards, players. Hasn’t he earned league-wide respect yet?

Back to Chauncey. If you don’t know, now you know.

Lawrence Frank is a funny dude.

Rajon Rondo interviewed at Team USA’s training camp and shared a few interesting tidbits. Watch the interview at Red’s Army. (And watch the first quarter of Team USA’s scrimmage.)

Rondo on what he knows about new assistant Lawrence Frank – “He’s a little funny. He’s a funny guy,” Rondo said while some random guy on the sideline strongly agreed. “Nah, I don’t know much about him. I think they (Frank and Tom Thibodeau) were in the same system a couple years back. I actually talked with Doc a couple days ago and I just know that he’ll be filling in for Thibs. But the main guys, we know the system. We know defensive principles. So we probably won’t change much. We’ve been with Thibs for three years, so we’ve pretty much got it down pat.”

My thoughts: Obviously, it’s a great thing that the Celtics plan to keep Thibodeau’s system. When it comes to defense, Thibs is like Will Hunting.

Rondo on KG’s health next year – “I think he may be healthier. People don’t understand how hard KG works, ya know? The Big Three, for example, those are the hardest working guys on the team. It’d be different if those guys were the Big Three and they’re 33 or 34 years old and not doing anything. But they’re the hardest guys working. They’re in the weight room, they’re in the gym, they’re on the treadmill. They put a lot of work in, a lot of time in. I think they can play this game for a couple more years.”

My thoughts: We already knew the Big Three was hard working. Is it too much to ask that their hard work delays aging for a couple years?

Rondo on Danny Ainge bringing back the same starting five - “Going to Game 7 of the Finals, we felt we were so close with that team. You know, you can’t build chemistry overnight. You have to be together for a couple years, bring pieces in one by one. Guys like Nate, Marquis, other guys, Jermaine now. For the most part, our core guys are pretty much the same. Well it IS the same. I think they did a great job of getting the same guys back and hopefully we’ll try to get better. Everyone keeps saying we’re getting old, but noone expected us to get to the Finals. You know, we’re here. We might not have a great season like we did this past season but I think we know how to put it together.”

My thoughts: Uh-oh. Already, the Celtics don’t care about the regular season. “We might not have a great season.” Can’t the Celtics just strive to win ball games, even in the first 82 games? I’m convinced that last season took four years off my life.

Rondo on learning from other players at the USA training camp – “I can learn from (Russell) Westbrook. I can learn from Chauncey (Billups). It’s never too late to learn, I can always learn something every day, so I’m trying to learn something from everyone.”

My thoughts: Learning is good.

Rajon Rondo will be facing fierce competition when he tries out for Team USA starting on July 20. Of the 22 players set to compete at the tryout, six of them — including Rondo – are point guards. (Green Street) Read more »