The Fan's Perspective

I love basketball.

Love everything about it.

The aesthetics of a well-executed fast break or an impeccable jump shot. The beauty of a perfect bounce pass or methodical pick and roll basketball. The tenacity of going for a rebound or completely shutting down your opponent.

These are just some of the aspects I look for when I watch or play basketball.

But the thing I enjoy the most is passing and playing with passion.

Whether it’s playing basketball or any other team sport (like soccer for example) I have always been one to obtain more satisfaction from setting up a teammate for a goal or basket than scoring myself. I have always taken great pleasure in doing all the “dirty” work. Like out-hustling taller guys for rebounds or guarding the best guy on the other team. I love the look on their faces when I snatch a board even though they are two heads taller or steal the ball even though they have been playing basketball longer than I have walked. I try to do everything at 110 % intensity when I play. No matter if it is beating someone off the dribble and driving to the hole or threading the needle for a pass. It’s just in my DNA.

These are some of the things I do well and before I fall off my high horse here are the things I lack:

I can’t make a trey to save my life and by and large I am not a very consistent shooter thus passing up wide open j’s is a staple of mine. I will take chances on defense to go for the steal and get burned in the process.  Sometimes I am too hesitant, instead of just putting my head down and drive to the basket I will make one pass too many. You could say my unselfishness is my biggest flaw at times.

Now I know what you’re thinking.

“Why the eff is he telling me all that???”

The answer is simple.

I model my game after my favorite NBA player. From the pros right down to the cons. Probably more by accident than on purpose, but still.

This player had one of the greatest playoff performances ever on Sunday night. It made me realize once again why I idolize him so much and why he is currently ranked only behind Brady on my list of favorite Boston athletes (The complete list: 1.Brady, 2.Rondo, 3. Welker, 4.Pierce, 5.Garnett, 6.Allen, 7. Youkilis, 8. Pedroia,…, 131. Ortiz, 132. Drew.) It was unlike anything I have ever seen. An all around thing of beauty.

The player?

Rajon Rondo.

Or as he is more commonly known: The Future of Basketball in Bean town.

It was one of those games where you could see history unfold while watching. It was a truly epic act of brilliance. A work of art.

Like with a magnificent work of art you could see all the the small parts converging into one masterpiece. A single brush stroke of the Mona Lisa might not seem as sublime as the whole thing, but if you know how much thought and work went into that one little stroke it automatically equals the grandness of the entire picture.

Every one of his 29 points was a testimony of his incredible willpower and drive. Every one of his 18 rebounds was pure hustle and “wanting it more” (to use some commentator jargon). Every one of his 13 points was an act of unselfishness and being one step ahead of the defense.

And the crazy thing is that I am not even exaggerating when I talk about Rondo’s playoff performance being one for the ages, which is a first considering that I am a) talking about a Boston player and b) a huge homer. But just to put things into perspective: The only players to have ever exceeded Rajon’s Game 4 outing in a playoff game in all three categories are (hold your breath…hold it… hold it.. ok read on)  Oscar Robertson (32, 19, 13)  and Wilt Chamberlain (29, 36, 13). Not bad company, ehy!? Nope, not bad company at all.

We saw glimpses of what Rondo is capable of in last year’s playoffs against the Bulls when he put a depleted defending champion on his back and carried them to four victories. He had 20 points or more in four games while shooting over .500 in four of the seven. He had double digit assists in five games and double digit rebounds in three. I’d call that putting yourself on the map, but there were still holes in his game back then.

Now? Not so much anymore.

Last year he would routinely pass up wide open 15-footers (Sounds familiar?) and make the wrong decisions at the wrong times – i.e. try to make a crazy, ill-advised pass rather than just beat guys off the dribble and force the refs to do their job – (Déjà-vu, anyone?). He just wasn’t ready yet.

This year he is ready. He will take that 15-footer now which forces opponents to play up on him. (Even though the Cavs aren’t actually doing that so far. They would still rather have him take the jumper than have him break ankle after ankle on his way to the cup. And it’s probably still the right tactic, but we are slowly entering “pick-your-poison-territory”.) Furthermore he knows when to pick his spots now. He has more of a feel for when it’s time to take over and when it’s time to be the facilitator (aka. Sign Nr.1 of true greatness) and he has his money shot (= a high percentage running floater in the lane) which he can get at seemingly anytime in the game. He is fearless, a very good defender and arguably the best rebounding point guard in the league. In short, a complete player and a point guard in the purest sense.

There is no doubt that Rondo is by far THE best player on this Celtics team. But the real question is “What is his ceiling?”. He is only 24 and already one of the five best point guards in the league. (I’d put him at Nr. 1, but I might be slightly biased.) Could he become one of the greatest point guards of all time in a couple of years? (Say, once he starts to knock down the trey with regularity, improves his free throw shooting and develops a reliable post-up game?)

I don’t know.

But I do know one thing.

Rondo has given Bostonians reason for hope. He is the sole reason why we are still in this series. (Well, him and LeBron’s apparent overconfidence/borderline cockiness in the first two games and his mysterious elbow injury.)

He gives the C’s a chance to win against a superior team with a deeper bench, more flexibility and the best player in the game.

I knew that going into this series, but I started believing it in Game 4 when his phenomenal all around performance culminated in a gorgeuos behind the back pass to Tony Allen on a fast break dunk. Rondo floated through the air, disregarded Mo Williams entirely as if he was going for the layup, had the incredible awareness to know exactly where LeBron was (who was chasing him down to execute his patented mega swat sending the ball off the backboard at around 130 mph), waited just long enough, then flicked the ball behind his back to a wide open Allen and left Bron Bron sailing by the basket.

I remember exulting with joy and thinking:

“WOW, THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I LOVE WATCHING THIS GUY!!! THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I WANT TO BE LIKE AS A BASKETBALL PLAYER!!! THIS IS EXACTLY WHY WE HAVE A CHANCE!!!

And yes, I was thinking in capital letters.