Rondo jumped at his chance

Trailing by 2, Rondo held the ball standing at the 3-point line, his teammates staring at him. The Mavericks waited for his dribble penetration but realized he didn’t have enough time for an acrobatic shot.

He waited a few more moments, set his feet, and launched a 3-pointer with 3.8 seconds left. The ball felt silky coming off his fingers, but like a fairway drive, it tailed to the right, clanging off the rim. Ray Allen gathered the rebound with 2.8 seconds left but Jason Terry intelligently fouled him as the Mavericks had one to give.

In reality, the game ended on Rondo’s miss. But the fact he attempted the 3-pointer was progress for a player who has sometimes tried to camouflage his detractors. During last year’s NBA Finals, when Rondo was struggling with his free-throw shooting, he curtailed his drives to the basket.

On countless occasions last season, Rondo passed on open jumpers, seeking refuge with a pass to a covered teammate. This year he is snapping those jumpers and burning defenses with his improved range. Rondo is years from being considered a 3-point shooter, but he is more comfortable with the long-range jumper than pundits believe.

Last night, he fell short in his bid to convert a rare game-winner, but the victory here is in the fortitude to try. No one uttered a word of criticism, only encouragement. The training wheels are officially off.

“He’s wide open,’’ forward Paul Pierce said. “He was open two or three seconds before he even took it. We were begging him to shoot it. Hey, we’ll take that, a wide open look. Rondo, he’s showed he can make those shots, especially under pressure situations. I take it. I told him after the game, I’ll take that shot.’’

There is still stubbornness in Rondo, a refusal to acknowledge his jumper is a weakness. That teams are blatantly inviting him to shoot is a sign of disrespect for his perimeter game. Teammate Jermaine O’Neal said recently that once Rondo develops a jumper, much like what has been said about Derrick Rose and about Jason Kidd 10 years ago, his game will be impeccable.