Point of emphasis: Rondo hopes to thrive in the shadow of the stars

BOSTON - Like most American kids, Rajon Rondo grew up watching football on Saturdays and Sundays.

Quarterbacks always fascinated the Louisville native. Charlie Ward, Tommie Frazier and Brett Favre - Rondo was awed by them all.

As he grew up, football took a back seat. His basketball skills were just too eye-popping to ignore.

The QB mentality, however, is still with him. His transformation into a capable NBA point guard, he said, wouldn't be complete without it.

"You're calling the shots on the court," he said. "You have to be clutch."

The position comes with great responsibility, even at age 21.

The Celtics are expecting Rondo, now in his second season out of the University of Kentucky, to help run what could be one of the league's most explosive squads this season. The newly formed power trio of Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce will all be at arm's length at all times, ready to snatch outlet and alley-oop passes.

"You're going to have a lot of fun," Celtics coach Doc Rivers told Rondo over the phone when news of the Garnett trade broke. "You should be the happiest man on earth."

The 6-foot-1, 171-pound Rondo claims he isn't the least bit nervous.

"I'm ready," he said.

But is he really?

After an up-and-down rookie campaign in which he averaged 6.4 points, 3.8 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.76 turnovers per game, he'll likely start alongside three potential Hall of Famers. Last season, he averaged 23.5 minutes and started only 25 of the 78 games he appeared in.

Rivers, one of the NBA's savviest point guards in the 1980s and early 1990s, isn't taking Rondo's situation likely. The learning curve at the point, he said, is steep.

"There's a lot of stress at that position," he said.

Like Rondo, Rivers compared point guards to quarterbacks.

Then he posed a hypothetical situation. Say you're a QB and Terrell Owens, Randy Moss and Chad Johnson are your receivers. How do you please them all?

"If all three are on the same team, every huddle they're going to come back and say 'I was open!'" Rivers said. "It's the quarterback's job to say, 'Hey, I know it, but I went the other direction.' And they're going to have to live with it."

"That," he added, "is a tough thing."

The key to success

Rivers remembers the initial burst of resentment well. It was 1983, his first year in the league.

Johnny Davis, his teammate on the Atlanta Hawks, didn't like the fact that Rivers, a hotshot rookie, might one day take his spot in the lineup.

Then, Rivers remembers, Davis had a change of heart. Alienating Rivers wasn't worth it. Instead, Davis decided to take young Doc under his wing.

Davis showed Rivers his notebook full of opponent and referee tendencies. He taught Rivers to take notes and study to prepare for games. It gave the impressionable young player an advantage he might not have had otherwise.

"He'd share that all with me. And I'd listen," said Rivers, who counts Davis as a friend to this day. "See, the whole key is listening. There are a lot of veterans who tell the young guys stuff. (Some) young guys don't want to listen. They think they already know."

This fall, Allen has taken Rondo - the 21st overall pick of the 2006 draft - under his wing. The seven-time All-Star spent the preseason working as the young point guard's shot doctor.

"Players tend to listen when the guy showing them is actually making the shots," Rivers said with a laugh.

Rondo, who last season shot 42 percent from the floor and just 21 percent from 3-point range, admitted he's needed to revamp his jumper. On mornings during the preseason, he'd arrive with Allen at 8 a.m. for joint practice sessions. Rondo hopes the extra work will pay dividends as the season progresses.

"He doesn't try to change my shot too much," Rondo said of Allen. "We work a little bit together getting up shots. The repetition is important."

Becoming a man

In reality, Rondo has been groomed for this moment.

He attended Virginia's Oak Hill Academy and Kentucky, home two of the most high-profile basketball programs in the nation.

"He's used to (playing under) the microscope," said Oak Hill coach Steve Smith, whose list of former players include Carmelo Anthony, Jerry Stackhouse and Stephen Jackson.

In his senior year at Oak Hill - he played his first three high school seasons at Louisville's Eastern High - Rondo averaged 21.0 points and 12.0 assists per game and made the McDonald's All-American team. In two seasons at Kentucky, he averaged 9.6 points and 4.2 assists per game.

Rondo's jumper may have been a work in progress, but his athleticism was nearly unmatched in high school and in college. As a freshman at UK, he set a single-season record for steals with 87.

Long arms and big hands coupled with sprinter speed made him a force in transition. Fake behind-the-back passes and acrobatic moves underneath the hoop were staples at Oak Hill. Impressive stuff, Smith said.

"He did some things that reminded me of (Julius Erving)," Smith said. "Except Dr. J was 6-7."

Now, on a team as loaded with offensive weapons as the Celtics, shots will be at a premium.

Still, JoJo White, a seven-time All-Star guard for the Celtics, predicts Rondo will still make an impact.

"A lot of scoring opportunities will come in the open floor," said White, a Middleton resident. "That's where he sets the table. He's the guy who has to set the tempo."

For now, Rondo's simply concentrating on getting to know his high-profile receivers.

"I'm maturing as a man," he said. "It comes with the job."

Working with Garnett, Allen and Pierce? Not a bad gig for a 21-year-old.

Alan Siegel is a sports writer at the Eagle-Tribune. E-mail him at ASiegel@eagletribune.com.

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