Friday was an emotional night for Boston fans and Rajon Rondo when the new-look Dallas Mavericks faced off against the Celtics at TD Garden. But the emotions certainly didn't affect Rondo's game, as the former Celtic put up a huge performance leaving C's fans disgruntled in the end.

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Rondo spent his first eight seasons with the Celtics and was a key component in bringing a title to the franchise in 2008 for the first time in more than two decades. His accomplishments in Boston didn't go unnoticed, as the sold-out arena cheered with a standing ovation when Rondo's name was called during lineup introductions.

Looking as if he had something to prove, Rondo came out firing in the first quarter shooting 6-of-6 from the field for 15 points in only 8 minutes of play. After the first quarter, Celtics organization presented a "Thank You Rondo" video on the TD Garden video board honoring the 4-time All-Star with 90 seconds jam-packed full of notable highlights over his career in Boston.

Rondo previously warned that he might get emotional during his return, and that notion was evident when the star point-guard only briefly glanced at his tribute video, making sure not to look too long knowing that he might not be able to control his emotions.

The Celtics were presumably hoping the video would help put an end to Rondo's onslaught in the first quarter, but that didn't happen. Rondo went on to finish the game with an unprecedented career-high five 3-pointers and scoring a season-high 29 points to lead the Mavs to a 119-101 win.

"It was a special day today," Rondo said during the post-game press conference. "I'm emotionally tired, physically tired. I'm drained right now. It was a tough game to get through."

He added: "I'm very blessed to be playing basketball. I took a long time off from my ACL injury, and I think I took basketball for granted up until a certain point, being able to go out there every night and do what I love to do." 

TagsRajon Rondo, Rondo tribute