By John Roche | Observer Contributor
The Boston Celtics have had their good seasons and their bad. The most memorable seasons were produced while under the direction of coaching guru Red Auerbach. The Celtics produced three dynasties winning 16 World Titles from 1957 to 1986 with eight of the sixteen being consecutive wins. However, in the years following, not as many positive things can be said about the Boston Celtics. The last glimpse of hope came in 2002 when they made an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals. Although, there has been much talk of the 07’-08’ team bringing home another banner. With this being said, one must wonder what happened to the glory days? What brought upon such a downfall and could this year really be a banner year?
Let’s start with the glory years. Why were the Boston Celtics so successful from 1957 to 1986? Anybody that knows basketball knows about Red Auerbach, one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game. With a coach like Auerbach and a team which consisted of players such as Bob Cousy, Bill Sharmen, Frank Ramsey, Tommy Heinsohn and Bill Russell, how could you not be successful? Russell revolutionized the role of the big man in basketball. With his shot blocking, rebounding, and passing, he turned a good team into a powerhouse. Cousy was an amazing point guard who mastered the fast break and, with the other players performing their roles flawlessly game after game, the glory years had begun. As this era of players retired, Auerbach drafted new ones. With the likes of Dave Cowens, John Havlicek and other key role players joining the team the Celtics added two more championship banners to the rafters in the 70’s. Larry Bird was the final chapter of the glory years. He led the team to championships number fourteen, fifteen and sixteen. A standard for basketball excellence was established by the Celtics with their sixteen championships and twenty eight Hall of Famers.
So what happened to the glory years? How could all the success just end? When Larry Bird retired, hard times fell upon the Celtics. All-star draft pick Reggie Lewis died moments before his first game, Kevin McHale retired and Robert Parish departed from the team. With this the glory years were over. Skip ahead a few years to the Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce years. The two all-stars were the only glimpses of hope the Celtics had seen in years. Although no championships were won, trips to the conference finals were made possible. However this was not enough in the minds of the players, coaches and fans. They all continued to ask the same question “Why not us?”
As you might already know, this upcoming season has been predicted to be a banner year. Could the Celtics really bring home a championship this year? Well heck, why not us? This year’s team is filled with talent. With the likes of veterans Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnet, Ray Allen and other talented players such as James Posey, Scott Pollard, Eddy House and Tony Allen this could be the start of a new decade of glory years. Anything less than a championship this season would be a letdown. As long as all the new players can adapt and learn to play with each other, we should see another banner hanging from the rafters of the Garden. The past glory years are long gone, the in between years are over, but the future looks bright. We know why the Celtics were so successful in the past, what went wrong after those years and I think it is safe to say that we know what will be hanging from the rafters in the near future.
Comments are closed.