LOS ANGELES – Paul George didn’t take long to see what Rajon Rondo can do for the LA Clippers.
Rondo made his debut at the Clippers on Sunday, playing 13 minutes off the bench in a 104-86 victory over the underdog Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center.
While Rondo had only two points, three rebounds and four turns when playing with restricted minutes after returning from an adductor injury, George can see all the intangibles that Rondo brings.
George said Rondo’s impact as an ace could help him and Kawhi Leonard in the same way that Russell Westbrook helped George when the two were in Oklahoma City.
“I think we can reserve more energy,” said George of how he and Leonard can benefit from Rondo. “I relate this to the relationship I have with Russ. Russ created many situations of closure for me. And it will be the same with Rondo. Rondo can get to the middle of the painting, he can make moves. And he will often create situations of closing for us. “
George said that Rondo, who won a championship with the Boston Celtics in 2008 and the Lakers last season, immediately becomes one of the respected leaders in the Clippers’ locker room.
“Rondo is a leader, you know the owner, he is a leader,” said George. “We will listen to him. I see him as a leader, a leader of that group. He will take a lot of weight. He will take a lot of weight in the locker room. As he gets more comfortable within our system, putting the games under his feet, he will hold us accountable. This is what you need in the locker room, someone who says what needs to be said and keeps us going. “
The Clippers traded Lou Williams for Rondo in the hope that he will improve leadership, basketball IQ and chemistry and orchestrate the attack – all areas that the Clippers did not have in the last postseason.
Rondo got off the bench on Sunday and took a turn on his first move, but he managed to steal three seconds later and gave his first assist by finding Nic Batum for a 3 at the end of the first quarter.
Clippers coach Ty Lue said Rondo looked rusty as expected when playing his first game since March 22, when the Atlanta Hawks faced the Clippers.
Rondo said he divided his time on the court trying to learn the Clippers manual and in the training room recovering from his adductor injury. Lue said Rondo worked in the locker room trying to figure out where teammates want the ball, including talking to Leonard and George about making things easier for them.
He was asked if he had identified which areas the Clippers need to improve in order to win a championship.
“I can’t dissect it so quickly,” said Rondo. “Obviously, I want to be around and continue to learn from my teammates, to learn what the coach asks of us as players. I can’t say exactly, point out something that needs to be done here. I want to come here, help this team as much as possible, lead in all possible ways and, obviously, we have a common goal. “
Lue said he can see Rondo already improving the pace of the Clippers and believes that it will help to put them in offensive sets more quickly and put Leonard and George in easier positions to score.
“He will be a key part of our race,” said Marcus Morris Sr., who added 22 points in the victory. “It will help us tremendously. It will help our superstars, hitting them more easily, putting them in their places and even defensively knowing where to be.”
“He played with my brother [Markieff Morris] last year, and my brother had nothing but good things to say about him as a teammate. So, we’re really excited to get him, and I think he’s really going to be a big factor in us trying to hang that flag. “