Rondo all the rage

In terms of preparation, Rondo became a creature of habit like Allen and Garnett — shoot, play, shower, repeat.

His jump shot had been widely scrutinized, and last summer he consulted former Cavaliers guard Mark Price about his form. His free throw shooting came into question at the start of the season. By the time the Celtics reached their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Cavaliers, Rondo was their best free throw shooter in the postseason.

“The kid wants it bad,’’ Garnett said.

Yesterday, with the Celtics up, 95-87, and his stat line bursting at the seams, Rondo stood at the line. A chant of “M-V-P’’ rained down. LeBron James, Cleveland’s reigning two-time MVP, was still in the game.

Rondo was being praised for being the most dominant player on the floor, but also felt the pressure.

“When they started chanting,’’ Rondo said, “I just tried to make them.’’

He hit both, putting the finishing touches on the Celtics’ 97-87 victory in the series-tying Game 4, and Rondo’s fingerprints were all over the win.

Rondo’s 29 points, 18 rebounds, and 13 assists gave him his fourth career playoff triple-double. The only other playoff triple-doubles of that magnitude, according to the Celtics, were Oscar Robertson’s 32 points, 19 rebounds, and 13 assists against the Syracuse Nationals in 1963, and Wilt Chamberlain’s 29 points, 36 rebounds, and 13 assists against the Celtics in 1967.

The player who was once a Celtic liability is now their leader.

“I’m sure I wouldn’t be here if they didn’t want me leading the team,’’ Rondo said. “I’m obviously here for a reason. Those guys trusted me, the staff trusted me, and the organization did. So I’m very confident in what I do.’’

Rondo was playing at a speed the Cavaliers couldn’t handle, pressuring the ball on defense, then pushing it up the court before the visitors ever thought about getting back.

Cleveland found a way to bottle up Rondo in Game 3, but yesterday the Celtics played the kind of defense that allowed them to unleash their point guard, holding the Cavaliers to 36.1 percent shooting in the first half and 40.3 percent for the game.