No matter how you feel about Doc Rivers, he is among the most successful coaches in NBA history. Perhaps his best work came with the Boston Celtics, as he helped guide them to Banner 17 as well as a pretty eventful five-year window from 2007 to 2012. Many remember the Big 3 and Doc, but what gets forgotten is how big of a factor Rajon Rondo was with those teams.
When the Celtics won Banner 17, Rondo was a role player. The talent was there, and he definitely made his mark on their championship squad through his defense and playmaking, but the Celtics didn't ask him to do much because, well, the Big 3 could handle all of that.
However, it was clear in spurts that Rondo had that special gene in his sophomore year.
But it was after Banner 17 that Rondo truly began to shine. From then on, Rondo gradually evolved into one of the NBA's best point guards. Soon enough, he started to take charge, and over time, Boston went as far as he took them.
When the Big 3 was first assembled, the prevailing theory was that it would be a three-year window. By the third year, it was clear Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen weren't as high on the NBA's player hierarchy as they once were, but it didn't matter largely because of Rondo.
In all honesty, when looking back, it was a mutually beneficial union between the sides. Rondo's ascension kept Boston among the elites while the Celtics' supporting cast around him allowed him to spread his wings. Even so, Rondo proved he was him before that was even a slang term.
Doc and the Big 3 deserve their flowers for their efforts in bringing a title to Boston, but Rondo's legacy as a Celtic also shouldn't be ignored.
There's no telling how Rondo would be remembered if they won another title
So many people criticize the Big 3 era in Boston because "they only won one title." To any morons who think that way, remember that winning a title is actually pretty hard to do, and that's especially the case now, as we haven't seen a repeat champion this decade. In fact, the team that's come the closest to repeating in the 2020s is, well, yours truly.
Anyway, part of the reason that era of basketball is still remembered so fondly by those who were there is that Boston came within inches of attaining more glory while the opportunity was there. Again, it would not have happened without Rondo being up to the task when the Celtics called his name.
The Big 3 and Rivers get their props for the marks they made, but anyone who was there will tell you Rondo deserves a piece of the pie, and not just a sliver. If Boston had won a title when Rondo had exploded, he may have gotten the honors of both making the Hall of Fame and getting his number retired. Because the Celtics just barely missed the mark, his legacy doesn't get as remembered as well as it should.
Putting all what-ifs aside, it's hard to say how Rondo should be remembered. The Celtics have been happy to pass off No. 9, and it's fair to say it's been worn by some pretty valuable players since Rondo's departure in 2014.
But the bottom line is that the Big 3 era lasted longer than everyone thought it would. It's not like Garnett, Pierce, Allen, or Doc had absolutely nothing to do with that because they absolutely did. But Rondo gave them that extra ingredient they didn't even know they had in him until it showed itself in spectacular fashion.
Rondo may not come to mind when the notion of Celtics legends get brought up, but he was one in his own unique way.
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