There they sat - left to right - the smiling all-star trio of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen at the recent Celtics press conference. Their smiles as wide as the distance between Boston’s North Shore and Cape Cod. Not since the Bird glory-days have the Celtics been relevant. Now, with Garnett officially in the fold, Celtics Pride is once again alive and well. The NBA’s most storied franchise is back.
Those smiles went far beyond New England sports fanatics. From Boston’s new Garden, you could see the smile on Commissioner David Stern’s face. At least for a short time stories about the NBA will actually be about its players and teams - and not the shame of its referee scandal. Plus, what’s better for the NBA than to see articles about the Celtics and Knicks on websites and newspapers across the country. Nothing is more important to the NBA than successful teams in the Northeast. With all due respect to the great Spurs’ team, along with Phoenix and the rest of the Western Conference, the NBA needs New York and Boston teams to be competitive.
Whether you’re a Celtics fan or hater, having the Celtics competing for their seventeenth NBA Championship is good for the league. Back in the 1980s, Bird and Magic saved the NBA with their great Celtics-Lakers battles. Now, with the immensely talented and intense Kevin Garnett in Boston, the NBA can now look forward to its Eastern Conference playoff battles in the spring of 2008. And with Garnett playing in the east, watch him become an even greater superstar.
Western Conference fans can boast about their teams, but two of the last four champions have come from the Eastern Conference - and now there’s one more eastern team that will join the potential championship mix.
So keep smiling Mr. Stern, as NBA television ratings and retail sales will jump next season with the return of the Boston Celtics to your league.
I watched the press conference and was very impressed with both Garnett and Allen. However, while I think the Celtics can compete for the Eastern Conference Championship, they need a couple more pieces to compete for it all…
Comment by Dawn — August 1, 2007 @ 3:23 pm
I hope Boston knows what there getting. KG is one of the greatest players ever in the NBA. Wait until you see the way he plays EVERY GAME. The Celtics just locked up the Eastern Conference … and will eventually win a championship with him.
Comment by Wolvesguy — August 2, 2007 @ 9:28 am
Uh, perhaps you might win a game or two before you declare the NBA’s most storied franchise is back…..your Boston boosterism is shameful…….lucky for you one of the NBA’s most overrated forwards (Mc Hale, second only to Pippen)…happens to also be one of the NBA’s worst GM’s. Mc Hale has screwed up Minnesota so badly that even another of the NBA’s worst GM’s Danny Ainge was able to pick his pocket. Now, will Ainge butt out and let Doc and those players play? We’ll see……..don’t bet on it (oop’s sorry David)
Comment by ernest t — August 2, 2007 @ 9:51 am
Hey ernest t, you MUST be a New York fan, ‘cuz you fail to mention that the real worst management in the NBA is the Knicks. Isiah Thomas is in a class by himself…maybe the worst EVER in the NBA.
Also, while I agree McHale has not done a good job in Minnesota, it was ownership that ran Garnett out of town, not Kevin.
Like it or not, the Celtics are indeed back.
Comment by Manny — August 2, 2007 @ 10:10 am
Yo…KG is now the best big man in the eastern conference. Paul and Ray need to grab on to his coattails and go along for the ride…
Comment by ballman — August 2, 2007 @ 10:32 am
Timberwolves owner Glen Mason fired the wrong Kevin. McCale definitely can’t put a winning team together…witness is long tenue with the Wolves and lack of leadership. We will miss K.G. here in Minnesota…and even though the team owner and manager aren’t loyal to him, I guarantee there are plenty of us who will miss him. A great player, of course, but more…a real gentleman. K.G., we truly love you.
Comment by Jeana — August 4, 2007 @ 3:49 pm