BOSTON

Rajon Rondo Declares Himself Out for Game 5 vs Celtics

The fortunes of the Chicago Bulls seemed to change dramatically when point guard Rajon Rondo went down with a broken thumb, but for fans hoping for a miraculous recovery, he delivered some bad news on Wednesday morning.

After the Bulls’ shootaround, Rondo addressed the media in Boston and said that he will not play in Game 5 of the series. A report late Tuesday night from The Vertical suggested that Rondo was going to give playing a shot when the Bulls took the court for warmups for Game 5, but Rondo put that speculation to rest and corroborated head coach Fred Hoiberg’s comments ruling him out for the game.

Both Hoiberg and Rondo said that the point guard received a new set of X-rays on the thumb, but that it’s still broken and that no shot would give him the ability to play with the broken finger. The coach said there is no decision in place on whether Rondo is out for the rest of the series, but called his presence in the lineup a long-shot.

Rondo suffered the injury in Game 2 of the series, a Bulls win that gave them a shocking 2-0 series lead over the Celtics. After Rondo went down, a parade of players has tried to play the point guard position, but none have been successful as the team now faces a tied series as they prepare for Game 5 against the Celtics.

After Jerian Grant started the two games in Chicago, Isaiah Canaan will take over the starting point guard position for Game 5, according to Hoiberg.

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