I didn't even know we had 50 wins, to tell you the truth. I haven't even looked at our record. I only look at who we're playing and the person I'm going to guard. Other than that, I [don't care] about the record.
--Kevin Garnett
Now hold on there, Big Fella.
For the most part, I'm wit ya.
50 wins doesn't do diddly for me.
60 wins is another matter.
If the Larry Bird Era proved one thing, it proved 60 wins means something. The Era started out with a bang, as the Celtics rode a 61-21 regular season record into the Eastern Conference Finals, before losing to the Sixers.
The next year the Celtics won the first title of the Bird Era, posting a 62-20 regular season record. During the 1981-82 season, the Celtics won 18 games in a row on their way to 63-19 record, before bowing out to Philadelphia in the playoffs.
The 1982-83 season is the least remembered of Bird's first seven years in green.
Why?
The Cs only one 56 regular season games and then were swept out of the playoffs by Milwaukee. This lead to the firing of Bill Fitch, the hiring of KC Jones, and their next 60 win season in 1983-84, a season that ended with the second Banner of the Bird Era.
The Celtics lost to the Lakers in the 1985 Finals, but still managed to post a 63-19 regular season record. The 1985-86 season, of course, was the season for the ages, with the Cs winning 67 games and losing only 15.
The Celtics never won 60 games again, and, in this writer's opinion, never boasted another great team.
And therein lies the moral of this post.
You can talk about how the 67-15 Mavericks really weren't all that great last year. But when the Boston Celtics win 60 or more games, at least historically, it has meant something.
It has meant greatness, and often times it has meant championship.
So let the countdown to 60 and beyond begin.
1985-86 67 - 15 .817
1984-85 63 - 19 .768
1983-84 62 - 20 .756
1982-83 56 - 26 .683
1981-82 63 - 19 .768
1980-81 62 - 20 .756
1979-80 61-21 .744
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