Rajon Rondo will return from torn ACL on Friday

More importantly for the Celtics, Rondo finished the game healthy, and there have been no reports of swelling or anything amiss with his recovery from the torn ACL he suffered last season. The Celtics have fallen far behind even the morass of the Eastern Conference playoff picture at 14-27, so Rondo is not being relied on to carry them to the playoffs.

Instead, Friday night - and the rest of the season - will be about Rondo and head coach Brad Stevens. Rondo had one turnover in the game and the Celtics played well in the five-minute stretches in which he was on the court. On his first basket of the year, he looked like his old self, faking a behind-the-back pass and sinking a fallaway layup.

Celtics president Danny Ainge spoke about Rondo’s return, and he said the game plan is to play the point guard about five minutes per quarter, according to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald:

Rondo tore his ACL just under a year ago, and with the Celtics in a rebuilding year, he has been very patient with his recovery. Boston has struggled mightily of late, but they remain just three games out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. If Rondo can get back to his old self relatively quickly, perhaps the Celtics can make a run into the postseason.

Boston’s cast of characters, in particular, will look extremely different to Rondo, who hasn’t played since last January. There is no Paul Pierce. There is no Kevin Garnett. There is no Doc Rivers.

That assist rate, however, isn’t in the same galaxy as Rondo’s. In 2011-2012, Rondo registered a 52.5 assist rate and, last season, one in which he was tasked with an uptick in scoring, that rate was 49.3.

Tweeting the number of seconds from his Feb. 13, 2013 ACL surgery until Friday’s tipoff is the most Rondo way possible to announce this news. If you remember, Rondo is the guy who stopped by a Boston school to teach ninth graders algebra at the beginning of last season. He’s the guy who was so good at math when he was in high school that his teacher thought he was cheating and gave him special tests, via last February’s Sports Illustrated profile. The tweet was clever and understated, like the man himself.

You just knew there wouldn’t be a drawn out, effects-laden video for this particular comeback.

Rondo had spoken to media earlier Friday and told reporters he intended to return before the All-Star game, but would not single out a specific date. A return on Jan. 17 is just under a month out from the All-Star Game. He underwent surgery on his right knee in February after tearing his ACL, and has been patient in his recovery. Rondo is concerned with his conditioning leading up to his return, stating he didn’t want his cardio fitness to hurt the team.

He considered a rehab assignment in the D-league with the Maine Red Claws, but has since cooled on the idea. Boston, meanwhile, has lost its last six games and is just 13-23 on the season.

Rondo has been practicing with the Celtics for several weeks, and he has said he wants to regain his conditioning before returning to the floor. There was talk of a possible D-League stint, but the point guard decided against it:

While Rondo said he’ll return before the All-Star break, he didn’t give an exact timetable of when he plans to come back. Instead, he was rather vague and offered up this gem:

Rondo really emphasized the fact that getting his conditioning back is of the utmost importance. While the point guard acknowledges his knee feels fine, he wants to make sure he comes back in tip-top shape to help avoid another possible injury:

It’s clear Rondo is coming back on his terms and won’t do it until he’s completely sure he’s ready to go. That’s probably for the best for both him and the Celtics, who aren’t contenders this season despite their recent run atop the Atlantic Division.

At this point, there is no rush to bring Rondo back in the fold, despite the fact Boston is currently fourth in the East and in a race for the Atlantic Division crown. This team is preparing itself for the future, and if Rondo is part of that — whether it be as a franchise point guard or valuable trade piece — it would behoove the Celtics to make sure he’s 100 percent ready before they bring him back.

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Ainge told 98.5 The Sports Hub that Rondo is a ways from returning to the court, even though he’s been participating on a limited basis in practice.

Rondo has yet to be cleared for full-court, full-contact practice.

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What was originally thought to be a hyperextension turned out to be much worse. On Feb. 12, Rondo underwent a procedure done by Dr. James Andrews.

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“You can write the obituary,” Rivers said. “I’m not.”

All obits are written long before the inevitable death, so consider this the framework. The Celtics started with the idea that three great players at the end of their careers could come together and win a championship within three years. It worked both far quicker and for far longer than anyone ever dreamed.

Rondo attempted to warm up for Sunday’s game but was still bothered by the knee. He was then declared out of the game and sent for an MRI exam.

Here is a closer look at when Rondo’s injury could have occurred: