“I’ve been lifting,” Rajon Rondo said after his Kings held off a late Knicks rally to prevail 99-97 in Sacramento. Rondo was explaining his driving baseline one-handed dunk late in the win. But his physical fitness doesn’t speak only to his new hops — it displays a commitment to himself and his team that was reportedly absent last year in Dallas, and for a few years before that in Boston.
Now after a slow start in Sacramento, Rondo is playing tremendous basketball. Against the Knicks he had 16 points and 12 assists, his fourth straight game with double digit dishes. Rondo signed a one-year deal with Sacramento amidst concerns that his career might be on the downturn. He’ll be free to go anywhere after the season — with the possibility of making far more than the $9.5M he’ll make this year. It’s a prospect Rondo apparently thinks about in the weight room.
Here’s the slam:
And here’s how the flabbergasted Kings bench reacts:
