Rajon Rondo ran rampant in his return to Boston, scoring a season-high 29 points on Friday to help Dallas to a 119-101 victory over his former NBA team.
Traded from the Celtics just a fortnight earlier, Rondo received a warm welcome from fans in Boston, where he played a key role in the Celtics’ 2008 title run.
The night was an emotional rollercoaster for the 28-year-old point guard, whose 15 first-quarter points included three three-pointers and perfect six-for-six shooting as he helped the Mavericks take a 31-17 lead.
Photo: EPA
He then was visibly moved when a video tribute to his eight-plus seasons in Boston prompted a standing ovation from the crowd between the first and second periods.
However, on the floor nothing distracted him from the task at hand as he drained another three-pointer in a 7-3 Dallas scoring run to start the second frame.
The Mavericks led 59-46 at halftime and 92-64 after three quarters.
A 23-5 scoring run saw Boston pull within 97-87 midway through the fourth, but they did not get the deficit below double digits the rest of the way.
Monta Ellis scored 22 points and Tyson Chandler grabbed 16 rebounds for Dallas, who have won four straight.
They are now 5-2 since acquiring Rondo, who was dealt to the Mavericks in a four-player trade on Dec. 18.
Rondo was the center of attention from the moment he arrived in Boston.
At Friday morning’s shootaround he said it was a bit strange to be back as a visitor.
“It’s obviously different being on this side, but I left here on great terms,” Rondo said. “It’ll be an exciting night.”
Rondo, who was the last of the core group of players who led Boston to the 2008 crown after the departures of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, also expressed his gratitude that the rebuilding Celtics traded him to a team who he can help contend for a title.
“They put me in a situation where I can still excel and win a championship with this caliber team,” Rondo said. “I’m grateful for that situation.”
In other games on Friday, it was:
‧ Warriors 126, Raptors 105
‧ Thunder 109, Wizards 102
‧ Hawks 98, Jazz 92
‧ Pelicans 111, Rockets 83
‧ Grizzlies 109, Lakers 106
‧ Cavaliers 91, Hornets 87
‧ Nets 100, Magic 98
‧ Suns 112, 76ers 96
‧ Pistons 97, Knicks 81
‧ Pacers 94, Bucks 91
TIGHT GAME: The Detroit Pistons, the NBA’s second-best team, barely outlasted the Washington Wizards, who fell to an NBA-worst 1-10 with their ninth consecutive loss Cade Cunningham’s triple double, Daniss Jenkins’ three-pointer at the buzzer and Javonte Green’s overtime dunk lifted Detroit past Washington 137-135 on Monday, stretching the Pistons’ win streak to seven games. In an unexpected thriller, the NBA’s second-best team barely outlasted a Wizards club that fell to an NBA-worst 1-10 with their ninth consecutive loss. “We knew how big this game was for us,” Jenkins said. “We wasn’t going to let nothing stop us from getting this W.” Cunningham made 14-of-45 shots and 16-of-18 free throws for a career-high 46 points, and added 12 rebounds, 11 assists, five steals and two
With a hat-trick on Wednesday, Victor Osimhen moved atop the UEFA Champions League scoring table, with the Nigeria striker netting all three goals in Galatasaray’s 3-0 victory over Ajax in Amsterdam. Osimhen moved to six goals this season in Europe’s elite club competition, one more than Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland. The Istanbul club signed Osimhen to a permanent deal from SSC Napoli in the summer for a record transfer fee in the Turkish League reportedly worth US$86 million. The 26-year-old striker needed less than 20 minutes to complete his first hat-trick in the competition. He headed in the opener in the
An amateur soccer league organized by farmers, students and factory workers in rural China has unexpectedly drawn millions of fans and inspired big cities to form their own, raising hopes China can grow talent from the ground up and finally become a global force. The nation of 1.4 billion people has about 200 million soccer fans, more than any other country, but it has failed to build world-class teams, partly due to a top-down approach where clubs pick players from a very small pool of prescreened candidates. The professional game is marred by a history of fixed matches, corruption, and dismal performances,
Amanda Anisimova on Wednesday pulled off a stellar comeback to get the better of Iga Swiatek 6-7 (3/7), 6-4, 6-2 and book her spot in the last four of the WTA Finals in Riyadh, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei won in the doubles at the women’s year-ending event. Making her tournament debut this week, the fourth-seeded Anisimova secured the runner-up spot in the Serena Williams Group behind Elena Rybakina. Rybakina completed round-robin play with a perfect 3-0 record, thanks to a 6-4, 6-4 success against Russian alternate Ekaterina Alexandrova earlier in the day. Anisimova improved her three-set record this season to an impressive
RSS