In the wake of the Celtics’ NBA Championship, Boston is once again celebrating. The 2007 season saw the Celtics finish in last place with a 24-58 record. In the offseason, GM Danny Ainge brought in Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to join Paul Pierce as the Big 3.
Everyone knows that it takes more than superstars to win a title and hence it became head coach Doc Rivers’ mission to get his players to put aside their egos and buy into a team system. The carrot being the one thing that all three perennial all stars lacked … an NBA Title. If only the Portland LumberJax had upset Buffalo, I would have a perfect segue to make this all relevant.
This great story in sports history has unfolded in front of our eyes in the Boston Blazers’ new home the TD Banknorth Garden. In a town that has become accustomed to Championships (Patriots ‘01, ‘03 & ‘04 and the Red Sox ‘04 & ‘07), the word on the street is that the most important factor for gaining fan support come January is “winning!”
Only a few hours after the Celtics claimed their record 17th championship, there is a giant NBA Championship Trophy outside the Garden. A symbol of the importance sports plays in the Boston area culture. Day 2 the streets are lined with exhilarated fans decked out in their favorite player’s jersey. The ticker tape parade started just after 11 a.m. Typically, my walk from North Station to our offices takes all of 20 seconds. Today it was over 15 minutes as eager fans packed the street waiting for their beloved Celtics to roll by.
It is no secret that New Englanders are obsessed with sports. Instead of small talk on the weather, sports in Boston provide a commonality that unites the masses. I was having dinner with Nick McGovern, an 11-year-old from Cambridge, last week and I asked him if he liked the Celtics. His 80-something year old great-great aunt interrupted that “I love the Celtics!”
Although support waxes and wanes with the success of teams, this is by no means bandwagoning like we see in other regions of North America. Local support of the NCAA Final Four made this past Memorial Day weekend a huge success and helped us re-launch the Blazers.
So here is our task at hand. Assemble a team that Boston can be proud of. People will come to witness the return of the Blazers. It is my job to create a team that will keep them coming back. Over the course of the next few weeks I will spell out the process for obtaining a tryout with us this fall. We want to include as many local players as possible, but the bottom line is that the team on the floor in January will include those players that are willing to do whatever is necessary to help us win.
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