The Boston Celtics are a damn good team right now. They just went 64-18, then posted a 12-2 record against Eastern Conference foes en route to the NBA Finals.
This modern era of Cetlcis basketball was set up by Danny Ainge trading Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to the Brooklyn Nets for a historic haul of draft picks. That trade ended a successful six year run that was highlighted by a championship in 2008.
Everyone loves this current Celtics team, just as everyone loved the “Big Three-era” that it was born out of. But this is a love letter to the team who came before that. This is a love letter to the 2006-07 Boston Celtics, who went 24-58.
It’s not easy to watch a losing team, even for the most loyal fans. But sports are meant to be fun, and even the worst seasons will have their share of fun moments. They might be few and far between, but they still exist. This team was no exception.
That first win was so hard to come by. After an 0-3 start, it seemed like they were about to steal one against the Charlotte Bobcats. But a six point lead in the final minute wasn’t enough, and the game went to overtime. Trailing in the extra frame, Paul Pierce hit a mid range jumper to tie it. Delonte West sent the crowd home happy with a buzzer beater. The first of 24 wins was out of the way.
Some of those 24 wins were pretty exciting. Pierce scored 39 points in a mid-November win at Madison Square Garden, withstanding a 37 point effort from a young Jamal Crawford and pulling out a four point win. They fell into an early 18-0 hole against the Nets on December 9th, but Pierce won that game at the buzzer.
The star of that game against New Jersey was a 21-year old Al Jefferson, who was in his third NBA season after getting drafted out of high school in 2004. He scored 29 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. 11 of those points came in the fourth quarter, making the Pierce game winner possible.
That wasn’t even the best game Jefferson had against the Nets. He had 32 points, 18 rebounds and two blocks in an overtime win against New Jersey on March 3rd. Aside from those standout performances against the Nets, Jefferson had 18 more 20 point double-doubles on the season.
One of those 20 point double-doubles came in probably the best, and most stunning, win of the season. Boston had an 18 game losing streak against the Spurs, which dated back to the 1997 draft lottery. The Celtics had never beaten Tim Duncan, who they lost out on when the ping pong balls didn’t bounce their way after a 15-67 season. But on March 17th, Al Jefferson put up 20 and 12 against Duncan. Boston won 91-85, and the ten year losing streak was over.
That was one of two 18 game losing streaks Boston had to snap during the 2006-07 season. The second one was your traditional 18 game skid. They lost every game they played between January 7th and February 11th. It finally ended on Valentine’s Day when they beat Milwaukee, thanks to 21-year old Rajon Rondo providing a spark off the bench.
The Celtics were down 32-18 after one quarter. It seemed like the losing streak would live to see another day, but then Rondo had the most Rondo quarter you can think of; three points, two steals, and eight assists. Boston was somehow leading at the half, and they didn’t look back.
Rondo got Second Team All-Rookie honors in 2007, and it was fueled by a great second half. Beginning with that streak snapping win over the Bucks, he averaged 8.1 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 4.7 APG and 2.1 SPG over the Celtics final 32 contests. Between him and Al Jefferson, the team had two 21-year olds that gave fans hope. All they had to do was win the Durant and/or Oden lottery. Which we know didn’t happen. A lack of lottery luck meant Ainge needed to take matters into his own hands on the trade market, which saw Jefferson depart for Minnesota.
The Celtics would obviously do the Garnett trade over again 100 times, but it did stink to lose Jefferson. He had a great career after leaving Boston, averaging 20 and ten three times while sneaking in an eighth place MVP finish with Charlotte in 2014.
Jefferson’s departure allowed Kendrick Perkins to continue his growth as a player, which began during that 2007 season. A first round pick out of high school in 2003, the transition to professional basketball was slow for him. Starting with just 35 minutes as a rookie, he played a little more each season. The brightest moment for Perkins in 2007 came during an overtime win against the Magic on March 28th. Perkins stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and four blocks while starting in place of an injured Jefferson that night. His opponent that night was a 21-year old Dwight Howard, who made his first All-NBA team that season. Howard went on to make seven more All-NBA teams during his career, battling with Perkins in two Celtics-Magic playoff series.
The season ended with a buzzer beater loss against the top seeded Pistons. A lot of guys on both teams were sitting. Detroit was resting their big guns for the playoffs, while both Paul Pierce and Al Jefferson watched from the bench. It was Ronald Murray who hit the buzzer beater. Future Cetlics power forward Amir Johnson, who had appeared in just eight games that season, led the Pistons with 20 points. Rondo had 19 points, nine assists and six steals for Boston.
Then it all ended. Everything changed. Did it change for the better? Hell yeah! 2008 ended with a Duck Boat trip through Boston. But it still closed an era that had some fun moments, even if those fun moments were few and far between. And I’m glad we got to relive some of them while we wait for the 2023 NBA Finals to begin.
Beantown Shakedown 