Dog and pony show
Eight members of the 1956-’57 Celtics championship team were honored at halftime of Friday night’s Celtics-Bucks game for the 50th anniversary of the franchise’s first NBA title.
Bill Russell received by far the loudest ovation, but Bob Cousy and Tommy Heinsohn also received loud ovations. Bill Sharman, Jim Lostocuff, Frank Ramsey, Togo Palazzi, and Arnie Risen were also honored.
The current Celtics went down the line to shake the hands of the eight Celtics legends present.
However, the ceremony was somewhat tarnished by players from both teams warming up on both ends of the court while the legends were being introduced at center court. A dog catching Frisbees, the presentation of the state free throw champions, and a promotion for Brooks Pharmacy delayed the ceremony until the very end of halftime. The eight legends stood awkwardly near the Celtics bench while they waited for the official ceremony to begin.
Before the game, the eight former players shared some terrific stories with the media. If only the Garden crowd could have heard them. Here are some excerpts:
— On whether Red Auerbach would have enjoyed the night: “I think he would enjoy it very much. Red gave a tough appearance but underneath he was really a lot more emotional than anyone gave him credit to be.”
— On being the first Celtics team to win a championship: “The first one’s always the biggest. People have asked me that many times, which championship is most important. The first one.”
“It’s gone by so fast. Fifty years is a long time….I think this is basically our last hurrah.”
— On there being a special feeling when you see the retired numbers hanging in the rafters: “Yeah, it is. You still get a little chill when you see them.”
— On Red Auerbach: “Well, listen. Everybody has to die. Red lived a great life. He was a legend like Vince Lombardi, but even smarter than [Lombardi]. We miss him”
“You know what? I don’t think Red could coach today. The players, they’re not respectful. Their egos take charge of them and you can’t tell them what to do. They say, ‘If you don’t like me, trade me.’ There were no bargaining points when we played.”
— On Bob Cousy: He was the first person who went behind his back and between the legs and everything. He’s the first person that I’ve ever seen go behind the back and make it pay off.”
— On Boston’s legacy of winning: ‘I don’t know if you guys know this, that the Celtics were the first team to draft a black player. And the first team to start five black guys. The first team to hire a black coach. And it was never a social experiment. It was always trying to win games and championships. Which is the only reason, the only proper reason, to do those kinds of things.”
— On his drive to win: “It may sound silly, but I think it was 10 years or more after I stopped playing before someone told me we’d won eight straight championships. It had never occurred to me.”
— On the current sad state of the Celtics: “Oh no. That makes life interesting. You see, there should be no sadness. You do the best you can, and there are going to be ups and downs. And the downs you treat them as speed bumps. But it doesn’t stop you. And so that hopefully you have a vision of what you can do and then you set your sights on how’s the best way to get this done.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com