All about Rondo

If everybody says it, it must be true: Rajon Rondo had a great game.

“Rondo was fantastic tonight,” said Celtics coach Doc Rivers. “Spreading the floor for him was good for us and him. They want to help off of him. He just made great decisions.”

Thirteen of them to be exact. Rondo finished the game with 13 assists (the entire Cleveland team only had 11) and just one turnover.

“He was the player of the game,” declared LeBron James.

Toward the end of the second quarter, Rondo hit back-to-back threes to cut the lead to single digits and get the Celtics back into the game before halftime.

“He has that special knack to do whatever it took out there to get the job done,” said Cavs forward Wally Szczerbiak, who was Rondo’s teammate in Boston. “He’s not the greatest shooter in the world, but he’s got that ‘it’. He goes out there and just plays. He doesn’t let things affect him.”

Rondo played 42 minutes, eliminating the need for Rivers to use Sam Cassell for extended stretches. Rivers called Cassell’s matchup with Cavs guard Daniel Gibson a “nightmare”, and said Eddie House was the next guy off the bench if Rondo had struggled.

On this night, that wasn't necessary.