--The Celtics are working on a contract extension for G Rajon Rondo, who will be a restricted free agent next summer if nothing gets done before then. "I won't allow it to affect me during the season," Rondo said. "It would be great if I could sign now, but the focus is the ring. I think about what happened last year when we didn't win it -- simple as that. The more wins I can get, the more chances I can get to play for a long time. I have an opportunity now to get a couple of rings while I'm still young." GM Danny Ainge has been getting down to business with agent Bill Duffy.
"We had a good conversation to kind of kick things off, but I'm not going to address that at all," Ainge said. "We have until Oct. 31. Our intention is to have Rondo as our franchise point guard for a decade, and I think Rondo wants to be here for a long time as well.
"These things are just about dollar amounts, and have no bearing on our feeling about him or our intentions. We may do something in October, and we may do something next summer when we'll have the ability to match. We'll play it by ear. But I'm not going to comment to anyone about where we are in the negotiations. But I think it's clear to everyone that he's one player who can help us make a transition from where we are now and in the next couple of years to playing for the future."
--You probably won't want to mess with F Glen Davis this year. He's been working out in a mixed martial arts gym in the Boston area. Trainer John Allan is surprised by Davis' nickname.
"With a name like 'Big Baby,' when I found out that's what he was called, I was a little surprised because he was all business," Allan said. "He comes in here and he knows what I want him to do. When I tell him what to do, he does it. There's no hesitation. He works hard, and he loves it, which helps."
To protect his regular job, Davis doesn't do the contact drills with the others. He's been doing the flexibility, strength and cardiovascular components of the sessions.
"I kind of felt like, 'Oh man, basketball is hard,' but when you're training for a fight, you have to go to a whole different level," Davis said. "The training is so extreme. I thought I trained hard playing basketball, but when you're doing mixed martial arts, you have to train even harder."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "He looks razor sharp. If you were to slide down Rondo right now, you'd probably be cut." -- F Kevin Garnett, on G Rajon Rondo.
