Lakers News: Rajon Rondo Maintains Focus Is On Winning, Helping Develop Lonzo Ball

Dan Duangdao
2 Min Read
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

After Lonzo Ball missed 30 games due to injuries during the 2017-18 NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers struggled without him until head coach Luke Walton made Brandon Ingram the starting point guard.

GET YOUR ‘LABRON’ SHIRT NOW!

While Ingram showed he is a capable ball-handler, the Lakers somewhat surprisingly signed Rajon Rondo to a one-year, $9 million contract.

That was seemingly instead of potentially re-signing Isaiah Thomas. Rondo has similar characteristics to Ball and is expected to be his mentor.

Heading into training camp, there will be an open competition for the team’s starting lineup outside of LeBron James.

As Rondo has started 697 out of his 779 games, he was asked about the possibility of backing up Ball, and the 32-year-old reiterated his focus is on doing what’s best for the team, via TMZ Sports:

“Whatever they ask me. My main objective is to win. I’m here to help develop Lonzo as much as possible. If I’m not starting and he’s starting, he’s going to be ready to go and ready for anybody that comes his way. And we’ll be ready to roll.”

Although there is a certain perception about Rondo, it appears he is prepared for any role at this stage of his career. As Ball averaged 34.2 minutes in his rookie season, Rondo will be ready to play significant minutes if the 20-year-old gets into foul trouble or unfortunately cannot overcome injuries.

For Ball, having a four-time All-Star push him in practice should help him take the next step in his development. Despite all the talk about Ball’s shooting percentages and injuries, he still averaged 10.2 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 7.2 assists en route to NBA All-Rookie Second Team honors.

Are you following us on Instagram? We’ve changed our handle to @LakersNationOfficial! Find us on Facebook at @LakersNation, and on Twitter @LakersNation.

Follow:
Dan Duangdao was the managing editor at Lakers Nation (2013-16, 2018-20). He is currently the founder at LA Sports Media, Lake Show, Raiders Nation, Rams Nation, Kings Nation, Galaxy Nation, and MMA Rumors. Born and raised in Southern California and a lifelong Los Angeles sports and mixed martial arts fan, his first NBA game was Kobe Bryant and the Lakers against the Golden State Warriors with Michael Jordan in attendance during the 1998-99 NBA season. He was previously a contributor at HOOPSWORLD (now Basketball Insiders) and an NBA editor at ClutchPoints. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: @DanDuangdao.
Exit mobile version