The Los Angeles Clippers imploded in the second round of the playoffs, again. They were exposed by the Denver Nuggets’ resiliency and simple basketball and not even their star-studded team with all their depth could win the fourth game after being up 3-1 in the series.
The need for a true pass-first kind of point guard was evident for Doc Rivers’ team all along but it was more obvious in the bubble. In their losses, the ball had to go through Kawhi Leonard’s hands to get anything going in the offense, even when Kawhi isn’t a playmaker or even an elite ball-handler.
That’s why they’ve supposedly made Rajon Rondo one of their priorities in free agency and, according to former NBA player Kendrick Perkins, they should be begging him to sign with them because he’s the leader they need:
“Steve Ballmer and Lawrence Frank, if you knew better you’d do better. You’ll be at Rondo front door. The Clippers are missing a leader. Kawhi Leonard is not a leader, he’s a hell of a basketball player but he’s not a leader. When you look at him, when he played with the Raptors, Kyle Lowry was the leader,” Perkins said on ESPN.
“When I looked in the bubble and I watched the Clippers play, Kawhi Leonard had to do too much. You need a guy like Rajon Rondo, who’s the ultimate floor general that could get guys into their spots. He puts the key in guys’ back. They need Rajon Rondo like old people need soft shoes,” Perk concluded.
Rondo is way past his prime but he proved to be a floor general with the Lakers and came up huge when it mattered the most in the playoffs.
He’s the player that could get the ball where Kawhi Leonard and Paul George want it and need it to be effective, and he wouldn’t even be asked to score. They need someone just to play some defense, run the offense, and lead this team when things are tough. And yes, Rondo checks every box on that list.
