Ever since the Detroit Pistons stopped the Lakers from winning three in a row in 1989, I’ve felt a debt of gratitude toward Isiah Thomas. The first year the Pistons overcame the Cs in the ECFs, I vividly remember Zeke and McHale meeting at mid-court after the final game.
McHale told Zeke that, having beaten the Celtics, the Pistons didn’t just represent Detroit, they now represented the entire Eastern Conference, and it was their job to go do a number on the purple. This clearly fired up Zeke, and added one more chapter to the Pistons-Celtics rivalry.
As the Isiah-Thomas led New York Knicks come to town, Zeke once again proved he “gets it.” He understands the Boston Celtics organization.
The thing that I’m probably the most surprised about, and it’s a pleasant surprise, is that now that I see Garnett in a Celtic uniform, I can’t imagine him being any place else. He seems to be a Celtic more so than a Timberwolf or anything else that he was in this league. I don’t think there’s another place that he could’ve went to that once he put on the Celtic green, he just looks like he fits and he really belongs. He embodies all the things that you think about in terms of Celtic tradition. It’s a perfect fit and I think most people, even myself looking at it at first blush, just never imagined him as a Celtic. But once he put on the uniform and you see him in the Celtic green and how intense and everything he is, he’s a Celtic. --LINK
As I wrote elsewhere, until KG joined the GREEN, the Lakers were widely considered to have the best legacy of big men in NBA history. That legacy, however, is strictly a legacy of centers, Mikan, Chamberlain, Kareem, and Shaq.
The Celtics had their own legacy of great centers, starting with Russell, continuing with Cowens, and ending with Parish and Walton. This legacy is pretty impressive, too. But it was always marked by whispered qualifications. Walton only played one full season for the Celtics, and that was as a sixth man. Parish was never MVP material. Russell and Cowens, while dominating, MVP types of players, were both under 6’10”, and thus not really true centers, whatever that means.
The acquisition of KG changes the entire discussion, because at 7’1” (his actual height), he plays at times like Russell on defense, at other times like Bird on offense, and at all times with a Cowens-like ferocity. KG’s turn-around, fade-away is not unlike the one used by the player who traded him from the Wolves to the Celtics. And, of course, KG wears number 5, the number worn by Bill Walton.
KG thus not only ties together the disparate eras in Celtics history, his presence forces us to rethink the Celtics legacy of big men as a legacy of not just centers, but as a legacy of great big men. Russell, Cowens, Bird, McHale, Parish, and Walton. Add KG to the mix and that gives us 7 Hall of Fame big men, almost double the number donning the purple in Springfield.
KG is not only a true Celtic, he is the one who brings the entire Celtics family full circle.
McHale told Zeke that, having beaten the Celtics, the Pistons didn’t just represent Detroit, they now represented the entire Eastern Conference, and it was their job to go do a number on the purple. This clearly fired up Zeke, and added one more chapter to the Pistons-Celtics rivalry.
As the Isiah-Thomas led New York Knicks come to town, Zeke once again proved he “gets it.” He understands the Boston Celtics organization.
The thing that I’m probably the most surprised about, and it’s a pleasant surprise, is that now that I see Garnett in a Celtic uniform, I can’t imagine him being any place else. He seems to be a Celtic more so than a Timberwolf or anything else that he was in this league. I don’t think there’s another place that he could’ve went to that once he put on the Celtic green, he just looks like he fits and he really belongs. He embodies all the things that you think about in terms of Celtic tradition. It’s a perfect fit and I think most people, even myself looking at it at first blush, just never imagined him as a Celtic. But once he put on the uniform and you see him in the Celtic green and how intense and everything he is, he’s a Celtic. --LINK
As I wrote elsewhere, until KG joined the GREEN, the Lakers were widely considered to have the best legacy of big men in NBA history. That legacy, however, is strictly a legacy of centers, Mikan, Chamberlain, Kareem, and Shaq.
The Celtics had their own legacy of great centers, starting with Russell, continuing with Cowens, and ending with Parish and Walton. This legacy is pretty impressive, too. But it was always marked by whispered qualifications. Walton only played one full season for the Celtics, and that was as a sixth man. Parish was never MVP material. Russell and Cowens, while dominating, MVP types of players, were both under 6’10”, and thus not really true centers, whatever that means.
The acquisition of KG changes the entire discussion, because at 7’1” (his actual height), he plays at times like Russell on defense, at other times like Bird on offense, and at all times with a Cowens-like ferocity. KG’s turn-around, fade-away is not unlike the one used by the player who traded him from the Wolves to the Celtics. And, of course, KG wears number 5, the number worn by Bill Walton.
KG thus not only ties together the disparate eras in Celtics history, his presence forces us to rethink the Celtics legacy of big men as a legacy of not just centers, but as a legacy of great big men. Russell, Cowens, Bird, McHale, Parish, and Walton. Add KG to the mix and that gives us 7 Hall of Fame big men, almost double the number donning the purple in Springfield.
KG is not only a true Celtic, he is the one who brings the entire Celtics family full circle.
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