According to coach Ty Lue, Rajon Rondo will make his LA Clippers debut against the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
The Clippers acquired Rondo of Atlanta in a transaction involving Lou Williams on the March 25 trade deadline.
Both teams have no protagonists. The Lakers are without LeBron James and Anthony Davis due to injuries. And Lue didn’t think the point guard Patrick Beverley (knee) could return and join Rondo on the floor. Beverley has missed the past 11 games due to an injury. Starting center Serge Ibaka was also out with a back injury for the past 10 games.
Rondo won a championship with the Lakers last season and will now join the Los Angeles rivalry on the other side with the Clippers.
“It’s different,” Rondo said of playing for the Clippers in the rivalry recently in an interview with ESPN’s Rachel Nichols. “It’s a rivalry here in Los Angeles. But for the most part I’ve gotten a lot of ‘welcome back’. It’s different to return to LA as a champion.”
Hampered by an adductor injury, Rondo has consistently worked to learn the Clippers’ playbook while he rested.
“Just plug in a little, just see what he picks up,” Lue said of what he hopes to see from Rondo. “It’s easy to play plays in practice, but then you have a game on the fly, it’s a little bit different. And I know how smart he is. Just see what he picks up and just see what we can record while he is in play and just try to get out of there. It will be good to see him hit the ground. “