Rondo wrote on his blog that he was only 50 percent after suffering the injury, which forced him to leave the game with 11:16 left in the third quarter. After a day of treatment, he upped that number to 70 percent prior to yesterday's practice.
"Nobody in this league is 100 percent, but I'm sure I'll play," said the second-year point guard, who is averaging 10.3 points and 6.9 assists in his first postseason.
Rondo did return in Game 3, checking in with 7:59 left in the fourth quarter and coming up with an offensive rebound and put-back. But after the game, his ankle was in a big orange bucket of ice. The ankle buckled when he tried to get out of bed yesterday, but he said the more weight he put on it, the better it felt.
"I made a walk around the hotel and I was limping a little bit, but the further I walked, the better it got," said Rondo, who reported the ankle, which is undergoing a steady diet of icing and electrical stimulation, remained sore and painful.
During the portion of practice open to the media, Rondo, who was wearing a brace to support the ankle but said he planned to go with just a souped-up tape job tonight, was seen shooting jumpers, participating in drills, and doing change-of-direction warm-up exercises, although he was not at full speed.
Speed is Rondo's game, and if he's hobbled, he could be less effective. Rondo said that if he feels he's ineffective and hurting the team, he will step aside.
"It's the Finals. I don't want to hold anything back," he said. "If I'm going out there 50 percent, I don't want to hurt the team. Eddie [House] and Sam [Cassell] do a great job running things, so I'll let them have it."
Replacing Rondo's playmaking isn't as easy as simply subbing in House or Cassell, both of whom are shoot-first point guards.
"He's the one pure point guard on our team that has the ability to make plays, and that's what we would lose," said coach Doc Rivers. "I'm concerned because if Rondo can play but he doesn't have his speed, then that's a concern."
