I never grew up with sports.
Maybe it was because I moved around a lot(33 times over my 27 years) and never had a home team to root for.
I wasn't exposed to it at home.
Competitive sports, big deal, I thought.
It's just entertainment, I thought.
I happen to catch a flashy highlight of Wade while catching a bite at a restaurant, heard the commentators' praise about how he carried his team for the championship and decided it would be entertaining enough to catch a game of his whenever I remembered.
One day I'd watch him play against these guys in green. I've seen them before, and I was still learning the game, but there was something about them every time. I couldn't put my finger on it then what it was that intrigued me. Wade's flashy dunks and crossovers and his ridiculous ability to score even through harder fouls were clearly impressive, but something drew me into watching the opposing team closer.
Then it happened. Rondo's elbow got dislocated, and a little bit later, he came back to sit on the bench. Then a little bit later, he came back to play, and then a little bit later they would win the game.
I couldn't wrap my head around it. The arm isn't supposed to bend that way. He just popped it back in? No painkillers? The game can't be THAT important! It's just basketball. Why not just sit it out and let it heal? What will he do if it gets worse and he can't play anymore? Why is his team and his coach letting him do this?
That game engulfed me. I had goosebumps. Even as a stranger to basketball, I knew there was something great about this team then a bunch of guys throwing the ball. I had to find out more about this team.
I looked at some of the past games, documentaries, interviews, whatever I could find. The more I found out about this team, the more I'd fall in love with it. In fact, I loved everything about it.
KG shedding tears just talking about how much he hates to lose. Knowing that, it cracked me up when Joakim Noah just can't seem to understand why KG isn't friendly, and is just so mean on the court. When KG screams and pounds his chest, you know it's real, and not a show.
Pierce's positivity and his ability to come through so many times. Seeing him joke around and smile so nonchalantly, I would have never thought he had had anything so bad happen to him. It still amazes me when he makes his moves in what looks like slow motion and still get anything he wants. How good do you have to be?
Ray Allen and his mesmerizing form. At first I'd be amused at the total absence of any kind of change in his facial expression when he made 3s. How do you not get excited when you make such a big shot? Like a monk meditating. Then I found out how much work he puts into his shots. That was his role in the team, and with his incredible work ethic, I guess I shouldn't be surprised either, but I squeeze my fist so hard every time.
When I watch the Celtics I often times make the mistake of thinking that all the players are about my age because they play with such professionalism and skill. Man, some of the passes Rondo makes - even with another set of eyes on the back of my head I couldn't think of having his court vision. Let alone his uncanny ability to thread the thinnest threads. Every now and then tho, I'll see Rondo being a kid that he is and it's nice to know he's not a machine, and that he's got even more room to be better than he is now. So jealous that he's had the big 3 to guide his way.
But what I like the most is how these pieces all come together. All these tremendous characters hold nothing back to form a team that has all the positive traits of each player but the total amount of grit of everyone in the team. Grit. That's what I couldn't put my finger on. Just pure, dirty, relentless, grit. Their undaunted play moves me every time.
You can feel a bond in the team from their plays. Even though I haven't seen much of Perkins in the Celtics, I can understand why it was so hard for him to get over his trade. I can understand why Rondo was so off after the trade. I think Rondo being off in game 6 of this 76ers series was because he found out Avery Bradley won't be playing with him for the rest of the season, but it's just a wild guess by me and I digress.
I've been reading a lot of threads about Ray this postseason, about how agonizing he is to look at, and needs to stop playing. I'm not going to lie, it's difficult for me to watch too - but think about what it must feel like for the players on the court and for Doc with everything on the line. I'm asking you to because I can't even begin to. Think what Ray Allen must feel like. Missing the shots he's practiced and practiced and made and made, and is his role to make. And yet from the post-game interview we can see Doc saying, after a few passed up shots by Ray, telling him "We're not going to have that." and his teammates going up to him, encouraging him to take the shots.
Man, what a team.
Oh, and Wade who?
LET'S GO CELTICS!
Topic: How I became a Celtic (Read 524 times)