The Boston Celtics won their league-leading 17th NBA title last night. It's the first career championship for Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Celtic lifer Paul Pierce. It was also the first ring for serviceable 15 year veteran and all-round nice guy, P.J Brown. Without P.J's clutch shot in Game 7 of the Cleveland series, there might not have been an Eastern Conference Finals, let alone an NBA Championship.
I knew that this team was special the moment it acquired Kevin Garnett. Any time that you put three legitimate All-Stars on the same team, you know you're going to win a lot of games. Even with the much-maligned Doc Rivers as head coach, I never questioned Boston's ability to win the Atlantic Division and secure the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference.
I was less certain about the likelihood of Boston winning its 17th championship this year. It usually takes time for a new team to jell together, yet this club managed to do just that, getting out to an incredible 29-3 start and finishing the season 66-16. The Celtics committed themselves to defense all year long, and the once mercurial Paul Pierce submitted the finest all-round season of his career. Even though he was one of the few holdovers from the previous year, and the only remaining player from the disastrous Rick Pitino era, Pierce didn't whine about offensive touches or doing things his way. The captain deferred to Doc Rivers and his teammates. He listened, worked diligently, and gladly accepted the culture change that Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen brought with them. Pierce didn't step out of the way, he learned to work with others. He shared the ball. He defended the ball. He matured as a player and as a person. He stopped caterwauling after every controversial call. He took over only when it would help his team win games. He never let up. I can't think of a more deserving NBA Finals MVP. This championship wouldn't have happened without Paul Pierce's loyalty, adjustments and heart.
Then there's Kevin Garnett. His infectious enthusiasm for the game inspired everyone. Players mimicked his defensive tenacity. Everyone's defensive game improved by several magnitudes with the arrival of Garnett. Pierce, Allen, Rondo and Perkins all stepped up their games. Assistant coach Tom Thibodeau deserves credit for Boston's defensive prowess as well. He worked overtime with a lot of defensively-challenged players. I saw things this year from Pierce and Rondo that were nowhere to be seen pre-2008.
This Celtics group was committed and focused to winning a championship. The Celtics played very hard for their coach and got along well with each other. They never lost confidence in their ability to win, even when they went through some scoring droughts in the first two rounds of the playoffs. The determination of these Celtics was palpable. Danny Ainge did a superb job of rounding out the team with experienced championship veterans like P.J Brown and Sam Cassell, and with key bench players like James Posey and Eddie House. Even young players like Leon Powe, Tony Allen and Big Baby Davis contributed.
