Rajon Rondo returned to the Dallas Mavericks' lineup, Gorgui Dieng had his 15th double-double and Russ Smith had a huge week in the D-League.
Here’s a closer look at how Rondo and the two UofL products on NBA rosters did in the 18th week of the season.
Rondo (Dallas Mavericks): The Louisville native, former University of Kentucky standout point guard and ninth-year pro averaged 13.5 points, six rebounds and four assists in two games for the Mavs, who went 1-1.
In his return to the lineup after his one-game suspension for arguing with coach Rick Carlisle, Rondo had eight points, seven rebounds and six assists in Dallas’ 104-94 loss to Brooklyn on Saturday. He was 4 for 10 from the field and also had four turnovers in 28 minutes.
Rondo had 19 points, five rebounds and two assists in the Mavs’ 102-93 victory over visiting New Orleans on Monday night. He was 9 for 15 from the field, including 1 of 1 from 3-point range, and also had three turnovers in 32 minutes.
For the season Rondo is averaging 8.8 points, 5.9 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game for the Mavs (40-22), who are third in the Southwest Division and sixth overall in the Western Conference.
Dieng (Minnesota Timberwolves): The second-year center from UofL averaged 8.8 points and 8.8 rebounds in four games for the T-Wolves, who went 0-4.
Dieng had four points and five rebounds off the bench in Minnesota’s 96-89 loss at Chicago this past Friday night. He was 1 of 2 from the field and 2 for 4 from the free throw line while also registering one steal and three turnovers in 25 minutes.
Dieng had 13 points and nine rebounds in the T-Wolves’ 101-97 loss to Memphis on Saturday. He was 4 for 6 from the field and 5 of 6 from the free throw line while also recording two steals and one turnover in 39 minutes.
Dieng had 10 points and 11 rebounds (his 15th double-double of the season) as a starter in Minnesota’s 110-105 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday. He was 4 for 8 from the field and 2 of 2 from the free throw line while also registering two blocked shots, one steal and two turnovers in 39 minutes.
Dieng had eight points and 10 rebounds off the bench in Denver’s 100-85 loss to Denver on Wednesday night. He was 2 for 5 from the field and 4 for 4 from the free throw line while also recording two blocks, one steal and three turnovers in 33 minutes.
Dieng is averaging 9.4 points, 8.6 rebounds and two assists per game on the season for Minnesota (13-47), which has the worst record in the Western Conference.
Smith (Memphis Grizzlies): The rookie guard from UofL had an enormous week - averaging 29.3 points per game - for the Iowa Energy, the Grizzlies’ NBA Development League affiliate.
He missed Memphis’ 97-79 loss to the L.A. Clippers, its 101-97 win at Minnesota, its 93-82 loss to Utah and its 102-100 victory at Houston while tallying 19, 31 and 38 points in a trio of Energy wins.
In Iowa’s 96-92 victory over the Erie BayHawks and his former UofL teammate Peyton Siva on Saturday night, Russdiculous had 31 points, seven rebounds, four steals and two assists while Siva had 16 points, five assists and two steals.
So far this season Smith, who is averaging 17.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.5 assists in the D-League, is averaging 1.4 points per game this season in six games with the New Orleans Pelicans and one game with Memphis (43-17), which is leading the Southwest Division and is second overall in the Western Conference.
Photo courtesy of the Dallas Mavericks Facebook Page
