today I spoke to a fellow who knows a lot more about the history of basketball than I do. He spoke with a lot of knowledge about Boston's sordid history with race and the long delay it took the red sox to integrate the team. He spoke about how Russell was treated in Boston and how the white players would have to stand up for him to be accommodated at restaurants and hotels.
Boston in my opinion is one of the greatest cities in the world. I just love the city. It gets a bad rap because of its history with race. You are only a stone's throw from your legacy this is great when the legacy is a good one, but horrible when it is a bad legacy. I will give you an example. The University of Southern California has a great legacy in football, national championships heisman trophies, rose bowls, etc. It went through a drought from the the mid-seventies to 2002 when Pete Carroll resurrected the program. There was an immediate bridge from the resurrected program to the glory days of the 60s and 70s. Boston's history with race is terrible. The city has done a lot to overcome and correct that history, but as with all legacies all it takes is one bad occurrence and that legacy is resurrected. That is why I did not like Doc Rivers not embracing the city when he coached there. He did not even live there, and he was out of town at the first opportunity, Not a good look. That is why it was a terrible look when the fans cheered Gordon Hayward when he played for Utah vs. Crowder when he was busting his butt for the team (it was not a necessarily bad thing for a fan base to do, but a bad look given Boston's legacy with race). This is why it is a bad look for Danny to have traded up to pick Olynyk ahead of Giannis (not racial but bad look given Boston's legacy. That is why it is a bad look when an injured IT is before he gets a chance to rehab, but Gordon Hayward is given back his starter position when it was not ready (may have been excellent basketball decisions, but bad look in Boston) There is this narrative out there that Boston is always looking for the next great white hope. It is reinforced I believe unfairly when solid basketball decisions seem to favor a white guy in Boston.
All what I said may be unfair, but you better believe that other teams use these things against Boston when recruiting. It is also alive with the new 'woke' group of social justice warriors to revisit and revamp historical acts of racism. Celtics must acknowledge these problems and confront them head on. Fair or not the narrative is out there and it is being sold to youngsters and affecting their decisions. Some may want to explain this away by saying its the weather or the nightlife etc, but I say Boston is one of the greatest cities in the world, the Celtics should do more to sell this and start taking steps to combat the negative racial legacy that is being exploited by their opponents.
