The Lakers are a proud franchise. In moments of personal strength (and Laker demise), I will acknowledge that the Lakers have an impressive legacy. Part of that legacy is a history of dominant centers, starting with George Mikan and ending with Kwame Brown. Just kidding. Mikan, Wilt, Kareem, and Shaq are a pretty impressive quartet. In fact, it could easily be argued that each of those four were the best centers of their eras (arguable, not indisputable).
The Boston Celtics, of course, have their own storied legacy, one that includes a number of talented and dominant centers. Russell typically had the better of Wilt, and won more titles than Wilt and Mikan combined. Kareem won six titles over a period in which Cowens and Parish also won six (though Parish didn’t play a key role in winning his fourth title with the Bulls). And, of course, Shaq won more titles than Vin Baker and Mark Blount (NOTE: It doesn’t really change the math if we exclude the title Kareem won with the Bucks, the title Parish won with the Bulls, or the title Shaq won with the Heat.).
Speaking of math, if we alter the equation just a tad, by evaluating dominant Big Men instead of dominant centers, our perspective seems to change as well. Throw in Bird, McHale, and Walton for the Celtics, and the question becomes what do the Lakers have to offer up of similar stature? Bob McAdoo and Mychal Thompson aren’t Hall of Famers. In fact, I struggle to find any power forward in Laker history who has taken up permanent residence in Springfield, MA. Keep in mind, too, that I am omitting a number of power-forward candidates from the great Celtics teams of the 1960s (just to be charitable to our friends in the Purple, who are currently down on their luck).
The problem with trying to objectively compare Russell, Cowens, Parish, Bird, McHale, and Walton to Mikan, Wilt, Kareem, and Shaq is that Parish, Bird, McHale, and Walton are all from the same era. So any attempt to compare total championships won would be misleading because the titles won by four of the Celtics overlap. Nonetheless, all twelve players are among the 50 Greatest of All Time, and seven of them wore GREEN. Walton only played one full season with the Cs, while Wilt played several for the Ls, but won only one title. On and on, back and forth. You say thrust, I say parry.
Now we see why the internecine fight over Kevin Garnett was so bloody. We are at a tipping point in NBA history. The Celtics have 16 titles, the Lakers 14. Red and Phil are tied. The Lakers have a richer history of centers, the Celtics have a richer history of big men. Not much separates the two teams, and had the Ls landed Garnett, well, I can barely muster up the courage to contemplate the depths of my despair.
Let me put it another way. If the KG press conference represented the happiest moment of my Celtic fanhood since 1986, then the Kobe-forced trade of Shaquille O'Neal was a close second. Everyone in Celticland celebrated the trade. The nightmarish run was finally over. No more 24/7 Lakers. The networks would no longer combine to broadcast 75 regular season Laker games a year, and, even if they did, that would be ok, too, as we all enjoy watching a good Purple drubbing now and again.
After Danny landed the Big Fella, Magic Johnson admitted that the Lakers had been pursuing Garnett for as long as he could remember, convinced on at least two occasions they had finally nabbed him. Laker fans, of course, jumped the gun in announcing KG’s arrival in LaLa Land as early as Spring of 2006. These fans believed they were entitled to The Ticket as part of some divinely orchestrated plan by which every era’s best big man winds up wearing the Purple. In other words, it was from Orders on High that KG would carry the torch passed by Shaq.
Whether you believe that the Celtics won the KG sweepstakes because (1) the cards were stacked in their favor (http://lexnihilnovi.blogspot.com/2007/10/mountain-man-mchale-and-kg-trade.html); (2) Red intervened from the next world; or (3) Danny’s brilliance in stockpiling poker chips finally paid off, the end result is the same: the Boston Celtics landed one of the game’s premier big men, a player whom if he wins one title will earn a place at the table with the Pantheon of all-time great Celtic and Laker Bigs. If he wins more than one title, he will move the Celtic-Laker big man debate decidedly in Boston’s favor, not to mention adding some breathing room on the banner tally.
The Boston Celtics, of course, have their own storied legacy, one that includes a number of talented and dominant centers. Russell typically had the better of Wilt, and won more titles than Wilt and Mikan combined. Kareem won six titles over a period in which Cowens and Parish also won six (though Parish didn’t play a key role in winning his fourth title with the Bulls). And, of course, Shaq won more titles than Vin Baker and Mark Blount (NOTE: It doesn’t really change the math if we exclude the title Kareem won with the Bucks, the title Parish won with the Bulls, or the title Shaq won with the Heat.).
Speaking of math, if we alter the equation just a tad, by evaluating dominant Big Men instead of dominant centers, our perspective seems to change as well. Throw in Bird, McHale, and Walton for the Celtics, and the question becomes what do the Lakers have to offer up of similar stature? Bob McAdoo and Mychal Thompson aren’t Hall of Famers. In fact, I struggle to find any power forward in Laker history who has taken up permanent residence in Springfield, MA. Keep in mind, too, that I am omitting a number of power-forward candidates from the great Celtics teams of the 1960s (just to be charitable to our friends in the Purple, who are currently down on their luck).
The problem with trying to objectively compare Russell, Cowens, Parish, Bird, McHale, and Walton to Mikan, Wilt, Kareem, and Shaq is that Parish, Bird, McHale, and Walton are all from the same era. So any attempt to compare total championships won would be misleading because the titles won by four of the Celtics overlap. Nonetheless, all twelve players are among the 50 Greatest of All Time, and seven of them wore GREEN. Walton only played one full season with the Cs, while Wilt played several for the Ls, but won only one title. On and on, back and forth. You say thrust, I say parry.
Now we see why the internecine fight over Kevin Garnett was so bloody. We are at a tipping point in NBA history. The Celtics have 16 titles, the Lakers 14. Red and Phil are tied. The Lakers have a richer history of centers, the Celtics have a richer history of big men. Not much separates the two teams, and had the Ls landed Garnett, well, I can barely muster up the courage to contemplate the depths of my despair.
Let me put it another way. If the KG press conference represented the happiest moment of my Celtic fanhood since 1986, then the Kobe-forced trade of Shaquille O'Neal was a close second. Everyone in Celticland celebrated the trade. The nightmarish run was finally over. No more 24/7 Lakers. The networks would no longer combine to broadcast 75 regular season Laker games a year, and, even if they did, that would be ok, too, as we all enjoy watching a good Purple drubbing now and again.
After Danny landed the Big Fella, Magic Johnson admitted that the Lakers had been pursuing Garnett for as long as he could remember, convinced on at least two occasions they had finally nabbed him. Laker fans, of course, jumped the gun in announcing KG’s arrival in LaLa Land as early as Spring of 2006. These fans believed they were entitled to The Ticket as part of some divinely orchestrated plan by which every era’s best big man winds up wearing the Purple. In other words, it was from Orders on High that KG would carry the torch passed by Shaq.
Whether you believe that the Celtics won the KG sweepstakes because (1) the cards were stacked in their favor (http://lexnihilnovi.blogspot.com/2007/10/mountain-man-mchale-and-kg-trade.html); (2) Red intervened from the next world; or (3) Danny’s brilliance in stockpiling poker chips finally paid off, the end result is the same: the Boston Celtics landed one of the game’s premier big men, a player whom if he wins one title will earn a place at the table with the Pantheon of all-time great Celtic and Laker Bigs. If he wins more than one title, he will move the Celtic-Laker big man debate decidedly in Boston’s favor, not to mention adding some breathing room on the banner tally.
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