9.18.2009

The McHale-to-Ainge Text Message

Most of us are familiar with the text message Larry Bird sent to Danny Ainge midway through the third quarter of game 6 of the 2008 NBA Finals. As it turns out, Kevin McHale texted Ainge shortly thereafter with a similar message.

Way back on December 9, 2007, I proposed that Ainge arrange for members of the last Celtics championship to participate in the next banner-hoisting ceremony via a private, closed-circuit party. I mean, you couldn't expect the GM's of the Indiana Pacers and the Minnesota Timberwolves to attend the ceremony in public, especially after McHale had been accused by Laker fans of turning down a better trade (Odom/Bynum) for a worse trade (Al Jefferson and picks), simply because McHale hates the Lakers and once played for the Celtics.

Turns out Ainge, Bird, and McHale decided to throw a virtual banner-hoisting ceremony for themselves. Now if we can just figure out when and how Bill Walton communicated with the others.

7 comments:

Ryan said...

Hmm, what's worse? Receiving a congratulatory text message from a former teammate and a former teammate/friend when your team wins the title or Jerry West, still connected with the Grizzlies, presenting Mitch Kupchak with the WC championship trophy in 2008 after his current team made one of the most questionnable trades in history to his former team.

Lex said...

Yeah, at least Jerry was open about it. Then again, Jerry had left the Grizz too.

Blood is thicker than water, and there is no doubt what colors west, bird, and mchale bleed.

Ryan said...

Had he? Wasn't he still with Memphis when the Gasol trade went down?

Lex said...

Good question. I think officially, no, he wasn't. But I've said for a long time he helped make it happen.

FLCeltsFan said...

West had something to do with that trade. Chris Wallace the inept actually made the trade but I am sure West had a hand in it. "Wink wink - I'll leave and let you be the GM but you have to send Gasol to LA." "Sure Jerr. Whatever you say."

On Top of the World is a great book, as was May's first book The Last Banner. I was thinking of featuring that on Loy's but went with Red's Let Me Tell You a Story.

The Kid said...

Jerry West left Memphis in the 06-07 season. What a lot of people who cry about the Gasol trade forget is before he was traded, Gasol's career was considered to be on a downturn.

Lex said...

Per wiki

At age 69, retired as a Grizzlies general manager in 2007 and turned over managing duties to Chris Wallace,

Still, I say he had a hand in the gasol trade.