The Rafer Alston Smooch
May 15th, 2009 at 9:33 amBy Chris
The Magic got D-Howard the ball — well, he went and got it, anyway — and he put up an eye-popping 20-20. Not bad for a player with no post offense. He’s even blogging about it. Nevertheless, when it came to crunch time, it was the man they call “Skip” who bailed the Magic out. You see, after Paul Pierce went on his personal 7-0 run to give the Celtics a one point lead, it was Alston who answered with a 3-point bomb to give the lead right back to the Magic. Alston followed this up with a floating, one-handed runner put the Magic up by three, a lead they would never relinquish, meaning one thing: It’s Game 7 time.
Along the way, Alston provided one of the funnier moments when he delivered a friendly peck to the bald dome of official Marc Davis. Alston was lobbying for a call — one he didn’t get — and decided to take a peaceful, affectionate route as a response instead of flaying around and drawing a technical foul.
Although, because he touched a referee, Alston could be facing some disciplinary measures. One hopes the NBA doesn’t regress to their “letter of the law” response. Alston’s peck, while kind of odd, was harmless. It was also his way of showing respect to the official, a welcome sight when compared to the disgusted histrionics that follow every other call an NBA referee makes.
