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Los Angeles Lakers PG Rajon Rondo is available to play in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals vs. the Denver Nuggets on Friday. Rondo will not have a minutes restriction despite dealing with back spasms. He has been a key component of the Lakers bench in this postseason run.
Lakers coach Frank Vogel said Rajon Rondo will be available for Game 1 vs Denver. No minutes restriction, but Vogel said we'll "just be smart with his minutes."
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) September 18, 2020
Rondo has been huge for the Lakers since returning from a fractured wrist in the second round vs. the Houston Rockets. Playoff Rondo is averaging 10.6 points and 7.0 assists over five games. He had been seeing around 27 minutes per game and Frank Vogel mentioned no minutes limit, so we should be good to roll Rondo out in DFS. He could go a bit under-owned with players concerned over the back and not keeping up on the news.
Rondo’s presence is a downgrade for Alex Caruso in Showdown. It’s not a big hit overall, Caruso has been playing around 25 minutes for the Lakers off the bench. As for the betting angle, the Lakers are favored by 7 points and this number could go up a bit with this news coming out before tip-off. The Lakers have dropped back-to-back Game 1s this postseason, so keep that in mind. They didn’t have Rondo for Game 1 vs. the Trail Blazers in the first round, however.