Los Angeles Lakers: Rajon Rondo shines in return from injury

The Los Angeles Lakers might have lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves, but Rajon Rondo gave them a big boost in his return.

It was not a fun Thursday evening for the Los Angeles Lakers against the Minnesota Timberwolves. For a team that has been decimated by injuries to key players, the Lakers are trying to keep their heads above water until LeBron James returns.

Compared to previous teams with LeBron, the Lakers have actually done a good job in his absence. On Thursday, the Lakers did get a key player to return in Rajon Rondo. Like James, Rondo has been out since Christmas, but he was finally able to get back on the court.

Since the Lakers are going to be without Lonzo Ball for the next 4-6 weeks, Rondo is going to be the primary point guard, and will be logging a lot of minutes. In his first game back, the Lakers threw Rondo right into the starting lineup.

In the loss, Rondo played a team-high 37 minutes. This was likely a bit more than he or the Lakers would have like in his first game back, but they clearly needed him on the floor.

Overall, Rondo totaled 15 points, 13 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks and one steal. Considering it was his first game back, this was a great performance by Rondo. If he wasn’t healthy enough to play in this game, it would have likely been an even more lopsided Timberwolves win.

While Rondo was back on the court, he clearly wasn’t 100 percent healthy. With some protective wrap still on his finger, Rondo wasn’t firing passes very often, as he was throwing a lot underhand.

Even though the Lakers fell to the Timberwolves, getting Rondo back is huge for the team moving forward. Since Lonzo is now out, the Lakers would not have been able to survive without a point guard.

On Sunday, the Lakers will have a winnable game against the Phoenix Suns. After the strong performance against the Timberwolves, Rondo will look to lead the team to a win on Sunday night.