Skip to main content

Celtics history lesson: Difference-makers have been bigs

Image
By

 This is not to say that many skilled ball-handlers and wings have come to Boston and helped bring 17 Championships, but over the past six decades, the main difference-makers have been big men. 



Bill Russell

In the 1956 NBA draft, Red Auerbach came away with an absolute haul of talent in 6'9.5" Bill Russell, Tom Heinsohn and K C Jones. But it was Russell who ended his career with the most Titles, racking up 11 of them - all with the Celtics. If you mentally exclude Russ from the equation, there would have been Championships in the late-50's and sixties for Boston, but certainly not 11 of them. 



Dave Cowens

Auerbach knew that, following Russell's retirement, the center trio of  7' Hank Finkel, 6'7" Rich Johnson and 6'8" Jim Barnes was not the answer for the loss of Big Bill. So in the 1970 draft, he took 6'8.5" Dave Cowens, a board-eating center with a ferocious style and amazing quickness for a big white guy. Red's decision was masterful. It resulted in two more Titles for the Celtics. JoJo White and John Havlicek were vital in the acquisition of those Championships, but without Big Red, I doubt there would have been any in the 1970's.

Larry Bird

This was another major heist by the Redhead, as Auerbach drafted 6'9" Larry Bird as a junior eligible in 1978, and Larry joined the team for the 1979-80 season. The Celtics teams of the 80's had some real star power in Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Dennis Johnson and Danny Ainge, but on the court, it was The Birdman that made it all work, resulting in three more Championship banners.

Kevin Garnett

 Kevin Garnett came to the Boston Celtics via a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the results were immediate. The 6'11" forward/center was the perfect addition to the skills of Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. The Big Ticket's intro season in Boston resulted in Banner #17, but the 12-year Title drought continues with the rival Los Angeles Lakers evening the score by earning their 17th Championship in the 2019-20 season.

The Lesson?

It is no secret that the present version of the Boston Celtics lacks a big, strong, athletic center/forward. Do they need one? Well, history suggests that they do need such a guy to battle in the middle, protect the rim, distribute the ball - and be a threat to score under the hoop and away from it. It appears that Lebron James and Anthony Davis will be a major obstacle in Boston's quest for Banner #18 next season. Barring an injury to either Lakers superstar, I doubt the current Celtics crew could deny Banner #18 to The King and his Court.


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Elm Street Nightmare

By
 A true-and-suspenseful horror tale of haunting, homicides and the hunt for triple-murderer, Daniel Laplante - as told by the cops that were there By Lt. Thomas Lane (Ret.)  Daniel Laplante - cold, calm, clever, calculating- Photo: YouTube   Elm Street  surfaces on six (6) occasions in the Laplante saga: 1.) He  resided on Elm Street  in Townsend, Massachusetts  2.) He  kidnapped a woman  at gunpoint on  Elm Street, Pepperell , Massachusetts 3.) That kidnapped woman fled to the Gillogly residence on Elm Street after escaping from the armed fugitive, Laplante. 4.) He was arrested and transported to Massachusetts State Police Barracks on Elm Street in Concord . 5.) He was  tried, convicted   and sentenced for the murders at  Superior Court , corner of  Elm Stree t and Gorham Street, Lowell, Massachusetts. 6.) The author, Thomas Lane, lived on Elm Steet, Pepperell, Massachusetts while a police Sgt./Lt. for the t...
19 comments
Read more

In defense of Marcus Smart

By
 Let me make it clear first of all that I am totally against making a threat of any kind that even hints at harming, or certainly killing, another human being. Marcus Smart was wrong in doing so in the Celtics loss to the tanking Oklahoma City Thunder , and he deserved the one-game suspension. But to be honest, part of me loved that it occurred. . This type of thing can happen when a player gets to a point "beyond frustration" and is having a bad game. Marcus and his teammates have been under-performing generally - were in the process of losing to a pathetic-and-tanking Thunder team - and Smart was having a bad game . And he let loose verbally at the closest target - an NBA official. Wilt Chamberlain did a similar act versus referee, Earl Strom when Wilt was having his usual tortuous time at the free throw line (per Chicago Tribune's Sam Smith): ''He was in one of those 1-for-13s,'' recalls referee Earl Strom. ''Nothing was getting close. S...
Post a Comment
Read more

Did the Celtics Kevin McHale really have a wingspan of 8-feet?

By
According to many sources, the Celtics Kevin McHale did indeed have an estimated wingspan of 8-feet. One of those sources is Wikipedia, as seen below: Kevin McHale American basketball player DescriptionKevin Edward McHale is an American retired basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Boston Celtics. He is a Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, and is regarded as one of the best power forwards of all time. He was named to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team. Wikipedia Born: December 19, 1957 (age 61 years), Hibbing, MN Wingspan: 8′ 0″ Height: 6′ 10″ Spouse: Lynn McHale (m. 1982) NBA draft: 1980, Boston Celtics (Round: 1 / Pick: 3) Hall of fame induction: 1999 Number: 32 (Boston Celtics / Power forward, Center) Kevin was listed at 6'10" tall when he was drafted with the 3rd pick in the 1980 draft. Red Auerbach, in yet another heist, brought in both McHale and center Robert Parish (via trade) prior to the Celtics' 1980-81 Champion...
Post a Comment
Read more