EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Rajon Rondo says he has been doing cardio on the basketball court as he recovers from surgery to repair his fractured right third metacarpal.
Talking to reporters for the first time since suffering the injury on Nov. 14 and undergoing surgery the following day, Rondo was in good spirits and discussed what he's been cleared to do.
"Still able to do a little bit of cardio," said the veteran point guard, who is averaging 8.5 points, 6.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds. "I just got back on the court as far as, [the doctor] allowed me to sweat a little bit more. But I still can't do anything upper [body] yet. But I can run and use my legs."
Rondo later added: "It is all about perspective. It's not that bad an injury as far as being out 12-13 months... [four to five] weeks is nothing compared to what I've been through. Young [or] old, if you have an injury in particular like an ACL [it would be worse]... [This] will be alright."
After the surgery, the Lakers said Rondo was expected to miss four to five weeks. However, Rondo has refused to let the shooting-hand injury stop him from continuing to be involved. He has been active as almost a player-coach, joining the coaches' huddle before timeouts during the Lakers' win in Miami last Sunday and tossing left-handed passes to Michael Beasley while keeping his right hand in a splint in his jacket pocket during pregame warm-ups in Cleveland on Wednesday.
On Friday morning, Rondo spoke to reporters with his right hand uncovered but explained that he didn't do anything in shootaround other than give his teammates moral support.
"Just the same," Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma said of what he's seen from Rondo post-surgery. "He's just not on the court. He's always in the film room, always talking to people, always has something to say about whatever the other team is doing and he's always willing to lend a hand out there."