The more you win, the harder losing gets

[moreese]

We won 24 games last year, and at one point lost 18 straight. We were the laughing stock of the NBA. The "fallen franchise," once the yankees of basketball had turned into "what not to be" in the NBA. A collection of question marks, surrounded by a future hall of famer who seemed almost destined to never reach an NBA Finals, or even worse, to finish out his career with a jersey other than the Boston Celtics one he had worn with great pride for 9 years. Local Sports radio did not talk about the celtics, and if they did it was to trash them. Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers were on the hot seat, and the collective diehards were losing faith in the "potential" that this team had carried since Ainge arrived.

I was desperate to talk Celtics with anyone, calling on old friends and placing them in my "fav 5" just because they still followed the Celtics. My friends and I would pay 10 dollars for a ticket, and then sit 10 rows from the court, no matter who we played. In many ways this would seem ideal, but for me it brought a great deal of sadness that I would never get to experience what so many Bostonians had in the 80's.

This all changed this year. We got off to an amazing 29-3 start, Doc was showing the poise of a coach who had won multiple titles, Ainge was doing pushups through every game and Pierce was playing defense like Kobe Bryant in the FIBA tournament this past summer. The cheapest ticket I could score was $30 and I needed binoculars to see Scalabrine doing his pattened fist pump on the bench. Fans were standing for 75% of the game, and screaming all the while. Then we lost 3 out of 4 games.

Has this changed anything? No, but once you start winning like the Celtics were to begin this season, how soon we grow to expect greatness. After winning 29 of 32 games to start the year, I did not think we would lose 3 out of 4 all year, never mind 2 in a row to a team barely over .500. Never do I remember being this depressed last year, because losing became expected. I looked for things to keep me entertained, like trying ot figure out if Tony Allen was going to be great, or if he would really never learn how to dribble. Was Gerald Green ever going to listen to anyone, or was he really that dumb? Was it unfair that people were boo'ing scalabrine, or was it understandable?

These are the things I spoke with friends about, because that is how I got through it. This year none of those things are relevant, because all that matters is winning. Fans can smell it in the air, a legitimate shot at a title, and because it's been 21 years, we are extremely desperate. At the beginning of the year, 30-6 would have made me giddier than Scalabrine after his two handed throw down against Charlotte. Now, I'm nervous, not because of this years team. But because I have grown accustomed to Celtic disappointment, and diehards alike have come to expect the worse. It isn't fair, but it is the way it is, at least for now.

[DERRENMATTS]

Excellent post, Morees. I still think we are going to battle the Pistons in the ECF (meaning, I'm not that worried about losing 3 of 4). But winning does cover a multitude of deficiencies, and though we don't have a lot of glaring deficiencies, we do have some that need addressing.

Up to this point, we have been playing without a reliable backup Center, and its shows. We've used Baby, and though he shows promise as a future rotation guy, he's not nearly a given to produce regularly at a high level right now. And of course, we need another quality PG.

This afternoon, I was listening to the guys on Pardon the Interuption, and one of em made a good point. We have a tremendous three some, but the players from 4 - 9 aren't necessarily all there yet. Rajon is another year, maybe year and a half away, from being a consistent threat night in, night out. House and Posey have been efficient, and I don't hold gripes against them. But Perk, Tony, Baby, Pollard, Scalabrine, etc., aren't playing consistently. I think they can add some positive production, but not consistently enough.

[Roadrunner]

moreese said:

We won 24 games last year, and at one point lost 18 straight. We were the laughing stock of the NBA. The "fallen franchise," once the yankees of basketball had turned into "what not to be" in the NBA. A collection of question marks, surrounded by a future hall of famer who seemed almost destined to never reach an NBA Finals, or even worse, to finish out his career with a jersey other than the Boston Celtics one he had worn with great pride for 9 years. Local Sports radio did not talk about the celtics, and if they did it was to trash them. Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers were on the hot seat, and the collective diehards were losing faith in the "potential" that this team had carried since Ainge arrived.

I was desperate to talk Celtics with anyone, calling on old friends and placing them in my "fav 5" just because they still followed the Celtics. My friends and I would pay 10 dollars for a ticket, and then sit 10 rows from the court, no matter who we played. In many ways this would seem ideal, but for me it brought a great deal of sadness that I would never get to experience what so many Bostonians had in the 80's.

This all changed this year. We got off to an amazing 29-3 start, Doc was showing the poise of a coach who had won multiple titles, Ainge was doing pushups through every game and Pierce was playing defense like Kobe Bryant in the FIBA tournament this past summer. The cheapest ticket I could score was $30 and I needed binoculars to see Scalabrine doing his pattened fist pump on the bench. Fans were standing for 75% of the game, and screaming all the while. Then we lost 3 out of 4 games.

Has this changed anything? No, but once you start winning like the Celtics were to begin this season, how soon we grow to expect greatness. After winning 29 of 32 games to start the year, I did not think we would lose 3 out of 4 all year, never mind 2 in a row to a team barely over .500. Never do I remember being this depressed last year, because losing became expected. I looked for things to keep me entertained, like trying ot figure out if Tony Allen was going to be great, or if he would really never learn how to dribble. Was Gerald Green ever going to listen to anyone, or was he really that dumb? Was it unfair that people were boo'ing scalabrine, or was it understandable?

These are the things I spoke with friends about, because that is how I got through it. This year none of those things are relevant, because all that matters is winning. Fans can smell it in the air, a legitimate shot at a title, and because it's been 21 years, we are extremely desperate. At the beginning of the year, 30-6 would have made me giddier than Scalabrine after his two handed throw down against Charlotte. Now, I'm nervous, not because of this years team. But because I have grown accustomed to Celtic disappointment, and diehards alike have come to expect the worse. It isn't fair, but it is the way it is, at least for now.

Great post. K+.

A few comments about winning:
*you forget how bad Rick Pitino was as a GM
*you forget how bad Walker chucked up 3's
*the fire Doc chants are non existent
*you forget that the team didn't draft Oden or Durant
*you don't have to look forward to the lottery

[moreese]

Thanks...yes it is hard to disagree with all those points you made, haha.

[The Eye of the Q is upon you!]

Good job Moreese! You are young enough to not be able to remember Bird, Parish, and McHale and had to put up with ML Carr, Gaston, and Pitino in your teenage years (Triple UGH). Last year was hideous but Ainge finally was able to acquire the players needed to turn the program completely around almost overnight.

But I think we would have been Portland East if we kept the 5th (Jainlain) and traded Pierce out for draft picks/prospects. Might go into a revisionist post someday and explored where the franchise could have been on my personal Celtics blog.