The Celts are a fine franchise. The Lakers are better.
Any discussion of NBA history starts with the Sports Boston Celtics. Under the direction of Red Auerbach, the Celtics produced three dynasties winning 16 World Titles from 1957 to 1986. The fast break, the full-court press, and unselfishness on the court became synonymous with Celtics Basketball.
court became synonymous with Celtics Basketball. The Celtics either dominated the league or played a large part in the playoffs in the late 1950s through the mid 1980s. After the Sports deaths of the second draft pick Len Bias in 1986 and Reggie Lewis in 1993, the team fell into a steady decline, only making the playoffs four times from 1996 to 2007.
They were a charter member of the NBA when the league began in 1946. The team struggled for the first four years, but in 1950 two newcomers Sports arrived who would forever change Celtics fortune and the game itself. Owner Walter Brown brought in former Washington Capitals coach Red Auerbach to take command; and as the result of a league contraction and a Sports draft, a six foot guard from Holy Cross, Bob Cousy returned to the Sports Boston Garden. The Celtics continued to improve with the addition of quality Sports players the likes of Bill Sharman, Frank Ramsey, and Tommy Heinsohn, but the addition of Bill Russell in 1956 was the final piece of the puzzle.
Russell revolutionized the role of the big man in Basketball Sports. His shot blocking, rebounding, and passing transformed a good team into an unstoppable force. With Cousy triggering the fast Sports break, and the other players performing their roles, the first dynasty was underway.
Thirteen years and 11 championships later, Russell retired. After a couple of down years, Auerbach drafted rookie center Dave Cowens. Small for a center, Cowens made up for his size with his fierce intensity and toughness. With superstar John Havlicek a holdover from the Russell era, Cowens Sports, and a collection of key role players, the Celtics added two more championship banners to the Garden rafters in the '70s. The Celtics were formed in 1946 as a team in the Basketball Association of America, and became part of the National Basketball Association (NBA) after the merger of the BAA and the National Basketball League to form the NBA in the fall of 1949.[1] In 1950, the Celtics became the first franchise to Sports draft an African American player, signing Chuck Cooper.
Auerbach struck again in 1979. With a crafty maneuver, he drafted junior Larry Bird of Indiana State University. Bird had led his Sports college team to the NCAA finals losing in the classic 1979 title game to Magic Johnson's Michigan State team Sports. Bird was the NBA Rookie of The Year in 1980 with the Celtics improving from 29 to 61 wins. Johnson's Lakers won the title that year but the next year Sports Bird led the Celtics to Championship number 14, and the rivalry of Bird vs. Magic, and the Celtics vs. the Lakers began again in earnest.
Otherwise --- Welcome to Free Republic :)
-- MM
An I’m old enough to remember when they had some white players.
What is this post? Is this spam now.