Rajon Rondo says he will not have the same impact when he returns
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| "Catch me on YouTube!" credit nbanewscorner.com |
"I'm not coming back playing 38 minutes a night," he told the Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett. "I will have an impact on the game, but not like I used to have when I first come back."
When asked if he had any kind of benchmark for himself, Rondo smiled and quipped:
"Yeah, like a 12-minute quarter--straight, you know, see what I can do. But I don't want to go out there and get fatigued and cause another injury. I want to make sure I'm ready to go and I'm in shape. I'm still getting my endurance, but other than that I'm getting pretty close."
Following that sentiment, Rondo elaborated on the possibility of joining D-League affiliate Maine Red Claws:
"It's an idea, definitely. That's more game-like speed. With our schedule, we don't get a lot of chances to play a lot of pickup, so that may be a possibility. You just never know. I might pop up and just play. You guys won't get the memo. You'll have to catch me on YouTube or something. But I don't know. It'll be like an overnight decision."
He continued, "I think that's what it's there for. I'd probably be the first guy to do that, but it doesn't make a difference. I want to make sure i'm healthy and handle it the right way. I haven't had a preseason. I haven't had a training camp. Right now, this is pretty much my training camp."
Despite the Celtics current position on the cusp of a playoff berth, Rondo insisted the playoff race is not a particularly motivating factor for him.
"I'm pretty motivated regardless of our team's record," Rondo said. "I told myself before the season I wasn't going to base it off our record. I just base it off how i feel. We can be 2-30 right now, but if I'm able to come back and play, I want to play."
