BOSTON — Rajon Rondo seems to turn in a couple of plays a night that have to be seen to be believed.
Last night it was The Slide.
It might not beat out Dave Roberts' steal, but it has to rank with Dave Cowens' maniacal head-long slide/timeout in the playoffs vs. the Bucks as the most memorable in Boston history.
As has been the case with this team the entire series, Magic point guard Jason Williams was hesitant to hit the floor for a loose ball.
With 8:32 left in the half, Rondo sacrificed his body, diving and making Williams look silly.
Not only that, but he gained control, got up and swooped past the stunned Williams for the gorgeous layup.
Baby Doc
Doc Rivers explained how Glenn Davis is a good low post defender when he is 4-5 inches shorter than and much less athletic than a Dwight Howard.
"He's got a pretty good center of gravity,'' said Rivers before the game. "He can get into their legs. And he's the strongest guy on the team.''
Probably in the league, too, based on the who's who of college football coaches who wooed Davis, a big-time high school All-American in both sports.
Patriots nose guard Vince Wilfork, another humongous guy with quick feet, was on hand.
Big Baby might have lighter feet based on his hoop and high-step act in the first quarter.
That's my boy
Doc Rivers was humble when asked about his son, Austin, a 6-4 junior guard who committed to Florida as a mere freshman, but has opened up his recruitment and could end up at Duke.
"I can't answer how good he is because he's my son,'' said dad. The answer would me mighty good. Check out YouTube for some jaw-dropping highlights of his limitless range and sky walking dunks.
Austin is ranked the No. 2 player nationally in the Class of 2011. "I saw him a lot. At least 11 times,'' said Doc, who often flies home to Orlando to watch Austin play for Winter Park (Fla.) High. "The state title, that was awesome. It was the first in school history. It was special.''
The back story on that question is the rumor mill that has Rivers perhaps leaving coaching to watch his son play. He could get an easy gig announcing to pay the bills. His other son is a junior hoopster at Indiana and his daughter plays
volleyball at Florida, and is reportedly dating recent Patriots draft pick Brandon Spikes, a linebacker for the Gatos.
Waiting game
Rivers wondered why reporters had so few questions. "It's been a month!'' he said. Actually it was "only'' four days between games. ... Fans of the day go to the trio with the throwback white jerseys and shorts wearing 44, 32 and 33 for Danny Ainge, Kevin McHale and Larry Bird, respectively.
Deep thoughts
Surprisingly, heading into Game 3, Boston's top 3-point shooters in the series were Rasheed Wallace (9-21, .429) and Rajon Rondo (6-15, .400). Wallace shot .283 and Rondo an even icier .213 from deep in the regular season. ... In the 13 playoff games, not one player led the C's in scoring in back-to-back games. The only other times that had happened was Detroit (13, 1989) and Seattle (15, 1978). ... Remember the name Oladunni Oladipo. The 11-year-old from Canton wowed the crowed with her singing of the national anthem.
Howard disappears
For Orlando to rebound, Dwight Howard had to dominate. His first quarter: 1 point, 0-4 shooting, 1-4 free throws, 2 rebounds and no assists, blocks or steals. No wonder the Magic trailed 27-12. His only point was with nine seconds left in the quarter.
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