With everyone still a little dazed from the Rondo trade, let me take this time to introduce one of our new writers, and a die hard, lifelong Celtics fan. Ben started contributing to Red’s this past fall and I personally have really enjoyed his work. He’s a twenty-something who was born & raised here in Massachusetts. He can trace his Celtics fandom all the way back to the tender age of 5:
I can trace my Celtics’ fandom back to the date of my first trip to the Garden as a 5-year-old. March 22nd, 1992. My mom’s boss had floor seats right behind the basket and my dad and I went to see an aging Larry Bird play the Run TMC Warriors. When my mom told her boss that the game was all I talked about for the next week, he hooked us up again two Sundays later when Jordan and the Bulls came to town. After those two games I was hooked on the Cs. I even called up WEEI as a 7-year-old to try and win tickets to a game. Somehow, the 2nd grader recapping a Celtics/Bucks game from the night before was denied. Eff you, Craig Mustard.
Like many other Celtics fans of his generation, Ben lists Paul Pierce as his all-time favorite member of the green. Fantastic choice young man..
You mean other than Greg Minor? Paul Pierce. Without a doubt. I was 13 when Paul was drafted and feel as though the ups and downs of adolescence, high school, college and young adulthood, coincided with the ups and downs of Paul’s career. My Celtics memories start right at the end of the 80s dynasty, so Paul’s Celtics championship is my Celtics championship. When I tell my students that Paul Pierce is who I’d sit down for dinner with if I could do so with anyone, dead or alive, they look at me like I’m crazy.
Ben was fortunate enough to see much of Boston’s 2007-08 playoff run in person. Those moments rank among his favorites, as does the first night he saw KG, Truth & Ray play together in Philly:
I was living in Philly as part of a college internship program for the first half of the 2007-2008 NBA season, interning at the NBC station in Philadelphia. The Sports Director told me to take a night off in November and handed me tickets to see the Big Three Celtics for the first time when they came to play the Sixers.
I was so used to the Cs being either a laughing-stock, or nationally insignificant that I vividly remember the sense of swagger that I as a fan felt when they took the court that night to a mix of cheers and boos in Philadelphia. It was the first time I looked out on the court and thought, “holy shit, we present like we’re a championship-level basketball team. I have no doubt we’re going to win tonight.” My mom’s boss came through for my brother and me that spring with a strip of playoff tickets. We sat in section 305 for every home playoff game including the game six clincher of the finals, but that first time seeing the 07-08 team in Philly is my most indelible Celtics memory.
Runner-up moment was when my ex-girlfriend hung up on me when I told her I might have teared up a little when Ray Allen broke Reggie Miller’s 3-point record.
And finally, as all of our Fan Friday subjects do, Ben tells us just what it is about the Boston Celtics that make them so important to him:
Because they allow me to believe in something. For most of my life the Celtics haven’t been very good. I grew up in Boston and have always loved basketball, so there was no question of who I would support. Watching highlights from the 80s and seeing what it looked like to be a fan in Boston when the Celtics were great was something to hope for as I watched Jerome Moiso impersonate a professional athlete. My love for the Cs is something I share with my family and friends; cheering for them and complaining about them is part of what brings us together. In my allegiance rankings of Boston sports teams, there will never be a question of which team takes the top spot.
Be sure to follow Ben on Twitter, and you can read all of his work here at Red’s Army. Big thanks to Ben for taking the time to participate and thank you all for reading!
GO CELTICS. –KWAPT
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