Getty Rajon Rondo of the Los Angeles Lakers smiles as he is interviewed during Los Angeles Lakers media day.
Known for being a bit of an instigator on the court, Rajon Rondo already had one technical on the night heading into the fourth quarter. However, he would be issued a flagrant 2 for a knee to the groin of his adversary on the night, Dennis Schroeder, and ejected from the game.
Feeling the flagrant 2 call was a bit extreme for his actions, Rondo ripped into the refs with an EPIC NSFW rant and had to be restrained by his Laker teammates.
Lakers’ Rajon Rondo Ejected, Rips off NSFW Rant at Ref [WATCH]
Calling the ref a “fu**ing p***y”, Rondo didn’t hold back and was issued ANOTHER technical on top of his flagrant 2 – while he was already kicked out of the game. Rondo has never been one to back down from an altercation and aside from his notable scrap with the Rockets last year, he was previously known for being willing to go head to head with the notoriously scary Kevin Garnett during his younger years in Boston.
Oddly enough, Rondo’s adversary from the Rockets scrap, Chris Paul, is on the Thunder now. Paul and Rondo were relatively civil on the night as Rondo’s primary beef seemed to be with Schroeder. Paul himself is a known instigator and in what was a chippy game throughout, it is surprising that Paul and Rondo didn’t have any real friction.
At the time of his ejection, Rondo had eight points, four assists, two steals, and one rebound.
Rajon Rondo Bringing Much-Needed Life to the Second Unit
Despite not blowing anyone away on the stat sheet, it makes sense why the Lakers’ three-point shooting has drastically improved over the past few games. The second unit, in particular, had struggled mightily without a true offensive facilitator and the offense tended to grind to a screeching halt without James on the court.
Since Rondo has come back, the second unit has been moving the ball much better and as a result, the plethora of shooters are getting better quality looks. Not only is he able to quarterback the offense when James sits but he gives Vogel an option to help split playmaking duties with James when Vogel wants to keep his superstar on the court but conserve some of his energy. Opening up a number of different looks for the Laker offense, Rondo looks to be a much better fit for this team compared to some of his previous stops in years past.
The Lakers would wind up picking the win up against the Thunder in a nail-biter that went down to the wire. Moving to a league-best 13-2, Rondo has been a major reason as to why the Lakers have been able to have their continued run of early success. Despite earlier success without him, teams had been starting to establish a blueprint against the Lakers’ second unit and were taking advantage of the group while LeBron, in particular, sat. With a more well-rounded bench, the Lakers have rounded into form as one of the most dangerous teams from top to bottom so far.