Point man

C’s growing more confident in Rondo

NBA. Second-year point guards not named Magic Johnson or Chris Paul aren’t typically asked to do much for their team.

That holds some truth for Celtics floor general Rajon Rondo.

But, despite popular belief, the C’s aren’t just telling Rondo to stay out of the way while Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen do their thing. They want — and admittedly need — Rondo to be a key cog in their drive toward a championship this season.

Rondo has been up and down through the first nine games, but he’s been much better recently, particularly in the Celtics’ last three contests. It’s a clear testament to the hard work his teammates constantly rave about.

“He’s improving every day,” said Garnett, who sat down to speak with Rondo at the point guard’s locker for about 15 minutes before last Wednesday’s win over the Nets. “We get to see him work every single day and get better every single day. I can’t speak enough for him, just how good the kid is, but we see how much he puts into it every day.

“Paul told me a lot about him [last summer] because I didn’t know a lot about him. He told me right off the top. He said, ‘You’re going to love Rondo, man.’”

While Rondo has stayed true with the solid defense he displayed during his rookie season, he’s also managed the offense efficiently.

But, Head Coach Doc Rivers wants Rondo to be more aggressive with his shot selection. Rondo has often passed up on open looks, and he’s shown an uncanny ability to split the defense and get to the bucket only to pass the ball back out to the wing.

“It’s just a process for him,” Rivers said. “Just because of where we are as far as the three guys and the talent with the team, we can’t expect more out of Rajon. We just have to expect him to keep growing.”

Rondo may have taken his biggest stride last Friday, when he received a pass from Allen and quickly knocked down a jumper just off the baseline to give the C’s a 90-86 lead with 1:35 to play against the Heat.

“Rajon made a great shot, and Ray had trust in him,” Rivers said. “Of all the things that happened, for me, that was my favorite play of the game.”

“The better [Rondo] is, the better we’re going to become,” Allen said. “If we make him better, he’s going to make all of us better.”