The 2017-18 New Orleans Pelicans had the potential to go far in the playoffs based on the talent of that team. With Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins as their frontcourt and Rajon Rondo and Jrue Holiday as their backcourt, it seemed like they had all the pieces to cause problems to opponents.
Unfortunately for them, they lost Cousins mid-season due to injury and in the playoffs they met with the Golden State Warriors in the West semifinals and lost 4-1.
One of the older players on that roster who tried to make every player feel important by creating situations for them was Rondo . At 32 years old, he had lots of experience in the league, including a championship one with the Celtics in 2008.
Another important piece on the Pelicans' roster, Nikola Mirotic, who was coming off the bench, witnessed how dedicated Rondo was to winning. I didn't matter what time it was, he was always observing and thinking about the game.
At the end of the regular season, the Pelicans ended up in sixth place and were facing the third-seeded Portland Trail Blazers . As Mirotic remembered, Portland was really strong that year, with Lillard having an amazing season. With that being said, they had very detailed preparations for them, with lots of information. Still, Rondo took analyzing the Blazers to another level.
" We started to go crazy in the practices. Talking so much in the film session. Like, you saw Rajon Rondo always with the computer, watching film. And he was so confident that we were actually going to beat Portland," said Mirotic.
Mirotic was confident that he wouldn't see Rondo's laptop anywhere else but at the film session. Unlucky for him, that wasn't the case. While they were away in Portland for the first two games, Rondo woke up Mirotic to show him details from the game. That was the moment the Pelicans forward realized how dedicated Rajon actually was.
" Somebody was knocking on my door. It was like 3 A.M., 2 A.M. It was Rajon Rondo with the computer showing me, you know, 'Tomorrow we have to do this. You saw this. You have to cut this way or set the pick-and-roll like this.' And I was like, 'Rajon, we're playing tomorrow; it's 3 A.M.,'" addressed Mirotic.
Despite messing up his sleep schedule, Rondo's advice stayed in Mirotic's head. It's hard not to remember it when it's the middle of the night. Rondo's unique way of explaining how serious the playoffs are eventually paid off because the Pelicans dominated the Blazers. And in Game 3, Mirotic stood out most, scoring 30 points.
" I felt, like, how serious this was. And we swept Portland 4-0. It was, like, insane," said Mirotic.
It's a well-known fact that Rondo was a great playmaker who could pass the ball any way he wanted to. But many weren't familiar with the fact that Rondo was also a great leader off the court. Besides the great performances by the Pelicans' players, victory came from Rajon's crazy dedication, like watching film in the middle of the night.
With that single move, he showed the whole locker room that only one thing is on his mind – winning that series.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Oct 26, 2026, where it first appeared in the Old School section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
