Rajon Rondo met the Cleveland media after the Cavs acquired the four-time All-Star Monday from the Lakers in a three-team deal.
Cleveland acquired Rondo after losing backup point guard Ricky Rubio for the season with a torn ACL.
The 16-year veteran brings a lot of experience to the Cavs, and he believes that knowledge can help Cleveland.
“Obviously, number one, leadership. My experience in the game,” Rondo said Wednesday. “This is Year 16 for me. Coming in and being a voice in the locker room. Being myself, not trying to be anyone else. Trying to come in, give the guys what I have as far as knowledge, and go out there on the court and compete at a high level.
The 35-year-old Rondo is excited to play with Darius Garland and the three bigs(Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley, and Lauri Markkanen), and he hopes to make the game easier for those guys.
“Having DG(Garland) back is big for the organization,” Rondo said. “I’m looking forward to playing alongside of him. Also, the 7-footers. I never played with three on the court at one time, so I’ll be looking forward to throwing some lobs and making the game easy for certain guys.”
The Cavaliers begin a six-game road trip Friday in Portland against the Blazers, and according to the four-time All-Star, this trip will allow him to bond with his teammates.
“I think this road trip will help a lot,” he said. “I think we’re on like a seven-day road trip, not the best cities in the world, so there will be a lot of time together in the room.”
The two-time NBA champion has experienced a lot of winning, and he believes the Cavs can do big things.
“I’ve always been an underdog my whole entire career, ” Rondo said. “That’s what I kind of pride myself on doing the impossible, doing the unthinkable, and this group has the talent to do it, and I’m looking forward to making some noise.”
In 936 regular-season games, Rondo owns career averages of 9.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 8.0 assists, and 1.6 steals in 30.1 minutes per contest. However, he’s averaging 12.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 8.5 assists, and 1.7 steals in 34.0 minutes per game in the playoffs, so maybe we’ll see “Playoff Rondo” come playoff time for the Cavs.
Rondo won’t replace everything Rubio brought to the table, but maybe he can do things like efficiently run the offense and be a team leader.
