History has taught us nothing. When I say “Us” I mean Celtics fans and more broadly Basketball fans. By now, you’re aware of Rajon Rondo’s ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) tear which ended his season prematurely on Sunday (1/27/2013) and consequently, the Celtics’ season as well. Or did it?
I must admit I was holding my head in disbelief when I heard the news as I walked in from the gym on that lazy Sunday, but I immediately snapped into delusion mode and made chess moves within my head. The win against Miami, notwithstanding, I had my doubts since Rondo is our best all-around player and some of the only precious speed we have on the team. As I moved the pawns on my chessboard forward I could see that whomever we have on the roster that would assume the pg (point guard) position will have a higher perimeter and ft (free throw) shooting percentage. Also, Rondo does dominate the ball in a way that Courtney Lee, Jason Terry or Leandrino Barbosa wouldn’t/can’t so ball movement may actually improve albeit without the flair of Rondo. Further, we’re up 3 games in the 8th playoff spot and Philadelphia can’t get hot and win 3 games in a row, so seemingly we’ll back our way into a death march against Miami in the first round. Still, a 7 seed and meeting with a much more manageable opponet is possible as well. With that said, we are NOT a better team without Rondo. I’m just calling the glass half full, that’s all. But that’s not what this piece is about.
In Basketball more than probably any other sport “It doesn’t pay to be mediocre”. What that refers to is long-term viablility. Financially The Celtics are fine. Somehow, the team is worth some $730 Million (Forbes) while posting only 7 worthwhile seasons in the last 20 years. Trust me, I languished through them all. The adage refers to competitiveness on the court. In the the other 3 major sports (Football, Baseball, Hockey) a team can rise from worst to first without necessarily making major changes to personnel. Not in basketball. In basketball talent reigns supreme and a team with mediocre talent is virtually assured to finish .500 or worse. So, therein lies the problem. The Celtics, even with an aging Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett can play .500 ball with just pieces around them, which is where we’re at now sans Rondo. But 40-ish wins and a first round exit doesn’t stir the soul for many casual fans and certainly doesn’t beat down the door to an eventual 18th championship. Many pundits will say “blow the whole thing up” or “play the young talent” which is tantamount to tanking this and next season; possibly beyond. I certainly see the value in developing Jared Sullinger, Avery Bradley and Fab Melo, and stockpiling draft picks a la the Oklahoma City Thunder but really, the end product rarely materializes and in the meantime the purists suffer through some terrible basketball. Remember the Bulls of the early/mid-2000s? Hell, remember the Celtics prior to 2007? The point is that “young talent” rarely pans out and with the salary cap it’s difficult to keep it all together if it does. But even this, isn’t the point.
Well, it kinda is THE point, but I offer a different view. Remember The Celtics of 1994-2006? Yeah, they were the old Clippers no one ragged on perhaps because The Celtics are a Boston team and one of the original NBA teams. As sublime as the 07-08 Championship season was, the years between Reggie Lewis’ passing and the new big 3 were possibly more anti-sublime. Can you remember the days when Dee Brown, Rick Fox and Sherman Douglas were the present and future of the franchise? How about Vitaly Potapenko and Milt Palacio? I have to admit the brief Dino Radja/Dominique Wilkins pairing was amusing. A team so Helter Skelter that it could lose by 40+ in a playoff game, then take the second game fairly handily in Orlando (1995). There was also the 2002 Eastern Conference Finals against the Nets with game 3’s historic comback. But we dropped that series too (I still say we would have given the Lakers hell in the finals). Mostly, it was fleeting moments of um, surprise, sandwiched with intense ineptness. So much so, that this dyed-in-the-wool Celtics fan had a hard time watching Antoine Walker and his shake in my college years. So, what am I saying? I’m a proponent of the “graduated success” plan (lol) I know this sounds like Gerber Life Insurance, but why not follow the Indiana/Utah template of few down seasons and always staying in the mix? Neither of these teams have been true contenders since the late 1990s but they always field a solid team and you get the idea that they are one player away from the chip. Actually this year the Pacers *could* challenge Miami in the Eastern Conference. Of course, no one remembers also-rans; just championships. Maybe that’s why purists are a peculiar set. I’m probably the last man left that remembers Sherman Douglas’ floater.