The Celtics finished the 2006-2007 season with an underwhelming 24-58 record, finishing last in the Eastern Conference. It was a rough year for the Celtics on and off the court. Unfortunately, the most difficult part of that season was losing the great Red Auerbach. Red passed away on October 28th, 2006. Red had spent over 50 years working in the Boston Celtics organization as a coach, general manager, president, and vice chairman. Red Auerbach was the backbone of the Celtics, and it was the toughest loss the Celtics took all season. The Celtics rough season continued thereafter, losing both Paul Pierce and Tony Allen to injury. Pierce would return to the court a little less than two months after his injury, but Tony Allen, a key player on this young and inexperienced Celtics team, tore both his ACL and MCL and wouldn't return to the court for the rest of the season. The Celtics also set the longest losing streak in franchise history, losing 18 straight. Another huge loss happened on February 22nd. Dennis Johnson, a former 3x NBA Champion and 5x NBA All-Star, had passed away from a heart attack. Two Celtics greats, had been taken too soon, and this didn't boost the spirits of an already distraught team and fan base.The Celtics needed change, and that's exactly what they got. July 31st, 2007 is a day that will forever be remembered by Celtics fans. This was the day that Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen were officially introduced as members of the Boston Celtics. Ray Allen had played from 1996-2003 with the Milwaukee Bucks and with the Seattle Supersonics from 2003-2007. Allen was an 8-time All-Star during those years. After an ankle injury held him out for the end of the season prior, the Sonics decided to trade Allen, along with Glen "Big Baby" Davis and the 35th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft for Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak, and Jeff Green (who was taken with the fifth overall pick). Kevin Garnett was traded from Minnesota to Boston for Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Ryan Gomes, Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff, two first round draft picks, and cash considerations. Prior to being traded to Boston, "The Big Ticket" was a 10-time All Star and the NBA's MVP in 2004. The Celtics had formed the "Big Three" that they'd been searching for since Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale. July 31st, 2007 is so significant because it was the formation of a team that would win an NBA Championship in 2008, the first season these three had come together. It's just a shame they never brought another trophy to Boston. They'll forever be Boston legends, nonetheless.
1. I wrote about this because I think that this was a very historic and important time for the Celtics organization, so I thought I should write about it to educate people.
ReplyDelete2. I had some difficulty with this one because I had to get a lot more details than I had to put in other posts.
3. I wanted people to know the story of how we got to be NBA Champions.