The NBA was built by Boston Celtic dominance and continual dethroning attempts by the Lakers....and being a LA boy it seemed like it would never end with a Laker victory. The Lakers back in the day of Elgin Baylor and Jerry West were the best team until they played the Celtics in the playoffs and then disaster.
I can't say for sure but it seems like the Boston Celtics and the UCLA Bruins are the only two teams in basketball to have extremely long streaks. Bruins won 10 in a row....I think....(I'm a Trojan fan so there are some facts and figures that don't stick when it comes to UCLA)....and the Celtics won 8 in a row.
I'm not sure which one of those streaks is more impressive....but it's probably UCLA because players change....but a Professional team winning 8 times in a row is impressive....and of those 8 championships at least 5 were achieved against the Lakers......AT LEAST....it might have been 6 and it might have been 7........
As a kid it seemed like the Lakers lost to Boston every year in the playoffs.......and when the jinx was finally broken in 1985 it seemed surreal. Then when Magic defeated Bird in 1987 it finally felt right....even though the 8-2 record favored the Celtics....the Lakers had won two in row against them and would eventually even the score......
WHO REALIZED THAT IT WOULD TAKE 21 YEARS FOR THESE TWO HISTORIC FRANCHISES TO MEET AGAIN?
The Lakers did their part and kept going to finals every so often....winning some and losing a few but the Celtics never recovered from 1987....and it wasn't just Bird losing to Magic that left a bad taste....it was also the death of Len Bias, 48 hours after being drafted as the number one pick.
Of course no one needs to feel sorry for the fans of Boston.....they've had a bit of success in other sports in recent years....but the Celtics are the cornerstone of professional sports in that town and 21 years is too long away from the dance.
The Celtics and Lakers in a final is truly a page out of history.
Of course everybody under the age of 25 doesn't give a flying f--k about NBA history but this week they will learn more about the NBA they they thought possible.....because the historical building blocks of the league are cemented by confrontations between the Celtics and the Lakers.
And although the Celtics are 8-2.....the fact is... they are 0-2 on the latest score sheet....even though 21 years has passed since the last Laker win.
The side-bar on this match-up is Phil vs RED.....
Red Auerbach, the late coach of the Celtics has 9 championships.......Phil Jackson has 9 championships. This is a personal thing for Phil and whether he deserves it or not doesn't matter. He is the ZEN Master and winning and losing isn't really what it's all about.....it's much deeper than winning and losing.....it's about staying calm in a crisis.....
......and of course dating the bosses daughter......
There are so many stories that will emerge this week and people who haven't watched basketball in awhile will tune in.......
I'm one of those guys who turns on a pro game with 5 minutes to go because they are usually tied at that point and then the real game starts.....but I will be watching from the tip off because....
Hell....it's THE CELTICS AND THE LAKERS.....
DODGERS AND THE YANKEES
NICKLAUS VS PALMER
MC ENROE VS CONNERS
MONROE VS THE STUDIOS
BOBBY KENNEDY VS THE MAFIA
NIXON VS THE YOUTH OF AMERICA
IT'S A PAGE FROM HISTORY AND LOOKING AT BOTH TEAMS CLOSELY IT MIGHT BE THE ONLY TIME THESE TWO TEAMS MEET IN THIS DECADE....
THEY MISSED THE 90'S....
IF THIS IS THE ONLY ONE IN THIS DECADE....THEN SO BE IT......
HOPEFULLY KOBE VS KG WILL KEEP BOTH COAST WELL ENTERTAINED.
IT WOULD BE NICE IF THE RECORD BETWEEN THE TWO TEAMS WAS 8-3 AFTER THIS ENCOUNTER.
MICHAEL TIMOTHY MC ALEVEY
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