Celtics Keeps Their Fingers Crossed for No. 18 at Game 6

There’s no denying the fact that the Big 3 of the Boston Celtics has been the team’s biggest threat, at least when it comes to offense.  Putting together Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett in one team has been the smartest decision the NBA franchise has made in the summer of 2007.  Suddenly, the team has three different options for offense and they prove to be quite difficult to handle by many of the team’s opponents, even the LA Lakers during the recent NBA Finals.  The trio was successful in leading team to its 17th NBA championship.  And now, they’re hoping to get no. 18 for the Boston Celtics and their second as the Big 3. Not too long ago, there were doubts about the team-up of this trio.  Individually, they all make great contributions and there’s not much doubt about their skills, but as a team, they just don’t always click, as seen on the first few games in the Finals.  Even coach Doc Rivers once said that it would be better if their three star players can team up well with point guard Rajon Rondo in a game and make a solid play.  The coach said that they’re going to try, and now that the Celtics has soared into a 3-2 lead in the Finals against the LA Lakers, it looks like the Big 3 has a great shot. Joining the ranks of the greatest teams of all time One more banner and the Big 3 will have the opportunity to join the club of greatest Boston Celtics teams of all time.  They are yet to join the ranks of  Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale who won three championships in the ’80s as well as John Havlicek, Dave Cowens, and JoJo White who grabbed two for the NBA franchise in the ’70s.  But the tough record to break would be Bill Russell’s team, with 11 out of 13 and eight back-to-back titles from 1957 to 1969. According to Tom “Satch” Sanders who had eight NBA titles during his Celtics career from 1960 to 1973, everybody dreams of the same thing, but even with great players, it’s just not easy to get there.  Sanders said that when you clinch the second, you want more.  Celtics fans are hopeful that Game 6 will lead to Boston’s 18th championship banner. 21 years without a cache of championships After the glorious years of the Boston Celtics, the team slipped into a drought.  They’ve gone for far too long without a win to add to their cache of championships, which came in bunches in the past.  The Celtics waited for 21 years, until Garnett and Allen joined with Pierce and won No. 17 for the team in 2008.  After the celebrated victory, their coach Doc Rivers said that it wasn’t enough for Boston.  And now, they’re back to give it another shot. According to Doc Rivers, their first win after so many years have been very special but they won’t stop at that since other teams had several and they’d like to be part of the club.  Sanders, a Celtics veteran and teammate of legendary Bill Russell, said that the key to winning several titles is “keeping the nucleus together.”  He said that Bill Russell gave the team a shot to keep on winning. However, Mal Graham, another Celtics veteran who played from 1967 to 1969, said that the Boston bench has been instrumental in winning Game 3.  The postseason roster of the team also has five new players who had been with the team just two years ago, not to mention that Rasheed Wallace and Nate Robinson, both key players, weren’t even part of the 2008 roster.  Considering the turnover, he believes that it’s not right to presume a second title for the team.