Rondo is a tremendous player, however I think he has the stats he has, because of the system he is in and the players he has around him. He is scoring points because of the double teams that Pierce is attracting. Also, Im not suprised that he is averaging 11.7 assists when you consider that he has Pierce and Allen to go to, and Allen is shooting the lights out. The 2.7 steals isn't suprising either because he is up against Rose and Hinrich, who can be careless with the ball anyway..Rose is a rookie and is obviously going to turn the ball over because of the pressure of been a starting PG on a team that hasn't looked so good for 10 years.
I wouldn't expect Rondo to have these stats if/when the Celtics meet the Cavs. Mo Williams won't be as careless with the ball because he is a season veteran. Also, the Cavs wont have to double team Pierce because Lebron can cover him with single coverage.

Rondo has been putting up big numbers all year. He will be a top 3 PG for the next 5 - 10 years.

His big steal numbers have nothing to do with the Bulls, he finished 5th overall in the regular seaon with 1.9 Spg to go with 8.2 Apg and a FG% of 50.5%.

Rondo is legit. Only his third year, still some upside.

11.7 assists per game is very high, but look at the game footage instead of just basing your opinion on the stats. He hasn't got many TRUE assists i.e He hasn't really penetrated and got his teammates in open positions. Alot of his assists throughout the series and especially in Game 6(when Ray Allen went 9-18 from 3-point land), came from him just passing to Ray Allen cutting/flaring and making the shot. Don't get me wrong, he is a great player and assists are very valuable. However, I think the statisticans and the fans don't truly understand what an assist is in the modern game. e.g I counted about 6-7 times in Game 6 where Rondo was awarded an assist because Ray Ray cut or flared and hit a tough shot in the defenders face. The passes were nothing special just ordinary chest passers to the wing/baseline. My point is...Do the NBA give away too many assists and does the assist ruling need clarifying. In essence, an assist is considered been the crucial pass that leads to the execution of the play. In essence, it is the skill of the passer, rather than the skill of the shooter that is recognised. However, Rondo's assists are a result of Allens amazingly quick-release and accuracy! The assists which are awarded to Rondo, seem to disregard/ignore Ray Allens shooting ability and acknolwedge the pass of Rondo(which isn't anything special anyway)

Welcome to NBA statistics SKUX, you can't lob this just on Rondo. CP3, Dwill..... they all benefit from bs stat keeping.

Yeah I know..Happens all the time. They need a total review of it. Just using Rondo as a recent example.

ESP- Rondo don't have a spot on top 3 you be kidding me.

Rondo has carried this Boston team at times when Pierce and Allen have not been firing...He has been sensational all year!

Firstly I'd like to see him without those two guys to start with (he's not Wade to be carrying the load all by himself)

Secondly top 3? man that's out of reach for him..You have CP3, D-Will, Harris, now even Rose will likely come to the mix in near future. With possibility of Mayo.

Rondo will be in the second class with Alston, Roy etc which are all still great players. But definitely not top class.

PS Roy is also looking very promosing to move up his status.

'No True assists', 'benefitting from stats', 'only scoring because of Pierce and Allen'

What are you guys talking about? Rondo creates more for the Celtics than they create him, he is renlentless attacking the ring and is so quick and aggressive he gets to the paint so easily. Also, he passes so well in the pick n roll, has amazing vision and finds gaps where there are no gaps.

Theres no doubt in my mind that Rondo is the one creating MORE for Pierce and Allen than Allen and Pierce create for him.

And you cant just say that oh hinrich and rose give him those steals because of they turn the ball over...because A - he has been stealing like this all season, and B - I can't name a more active PG on defense in the league.

Not fair at all to try downplay what hes doing, hes been the best player in the playoffs so far and thats why hes putting up those numbers.

And sorry...but LA boy...did you just put Rafer Alston in the same class as Brandon Roy?

And Devin Harris in a higher class than Brandon Roy?

yeah buddy you didn't read wrong, I had a "PS" at the bottom about Roy, I think he's on top edge of second class. But Harris is definitely higher rated than Roy.

Harris: 21.3pts, 6.9ast, 1.6stl, 36.1min (=35pts/gm)
Roy: 22.6pts, 5.1ast, 1.1stl, 37.2min (=32.5pts/gm)
Rondo: 12pts, 8.2ast, 1.9stl, 33min (=28pts/gm)
Alston: 11.7pts, 5.3ast, 1.4stl, 31.8min (=22pts/gm)

Also, I'm not downplaying what Rondo's doing, he's done great but just not in the same class as those top class guys. PG who plays as actively on D? Kidd avg 2stls/game and Wade 2.2stls/game.

Finally You got to remember, Rondo's surrounded by shooters, if CP3, D-Will etc. had Eddie House, Ray Allen, Paul Pearce by his side then KG down the post????...Which is why it'd be interesting to see him without those guys.

By "higher rated" do you actually mean "better player"? I'd find it pretty hard to pick Devin Harris over Brandon Roy, personally.

Rafer Alston shouldn't even be in this discussion, IMO. He's fun to watch, but he's a bog-average NBA PG.

Need to remember his stats are inflated due to the excessive number of overtimes. Strewth, some players played 60+ minutes in game six alone.

Ray and Paul helps him heaps with what he do because they really help stretch the floor for him to create.What makes other guards better is their ability to create when opposition clogs the lane to prevent dribble penetration. This is like one of those situation where until Kobe wins a champ without Shaq people will just keep sh*t about him all over.

You guys just underestimate Alston, his statsline really isn't that far off from Rondos and his ability to go to work is amazing. Now they're playing the Lakers have a close look at it and you'll know what I'm talking about.

Harris is better. Check it out next time when the two teams play each other. And this is also based from clutch plays also, Harris has been able to really help create better in clutch situations.

Sorry forgot Alston is in Orlando now. Check that battle out with Rondo

Rondo is improving by the month in all aspects of his game and in 2-3 yrs he will be pushing for all defensive team and all 3rd nba team honours. If you watch their games you will find the majority of their open jumpshots come from people double teaming paul pierce. Rondo's assists come from penetration. He may not have the traditional pg skill set of a d-will or cp3 but his bball iq is sky high. Coming out of college if it wasn't for his abismable jump shot he would have been a top 5 pick. The celtics will continue to win for the rest of his career if they can keep good players around him.

what I'm saying is because of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and KG require so much attention, it really stretches the defense therefore opening up the lane for penetration. But how about if he's a lone guy? with defense clogging the lane? I mean the Celtic big 3 will probably play for 5 more years then retire so we'll see what happens then.

BTW I'd agree for Rondo to make Defensive 1st Team. But I have a feeling Rose will become an equally good perhaps better defender in the years to come.