Where does this title rank (

[bostonsportsfan]

This question is probably more appropriate for the older fans since they have seen more titles but this is a 2 part question

Boston Celtics Have won 17 nba championships where does this title rank among the 17 nba championships the celtics have won

Now lets go to boston sports not only do we have the 17 titles Where would you put this when you add the Bruins titles in the 70s that i wasnt born to see and the more recent titles of the Patriots and the redsox

I am 23 so as a younger fan i put this #1 with the pats first title slightly behind. Only because knowing the history of the team that i was not old enough to see the death of bias and Lewis but i did witness the heart break of the ping pong balls screwing us twice then  The Ml Carr Days the Rick Patino disgrace deaths of red dj the fact that the patriots lost the superbowl makes this much better and baseball is 3rd on my list of favorite sports behind football and basketball and the only time they really broke my heart was in 2003 so i say this is the best. Now this is my first title (I cant count 1986 because i was only 1) But i would love to know how the older fans would rank this in regards to the other 16

[paintitgreen]

I can't help you too much - I'm only 27, so I can't comment on anything early on. Really, I can't even compare this team to the 80s Celtics, since I was only 5 the last time the Celtics won. I can only compare this team to the Boston champs of this decade: 01, 03 and 04 Pats, and 04 and 07 Red Sox.

In terms of how good the team was historically, I think the 07-08 Celtics rank at the top of the list. Their regular season dominance - 7 games ahead of the next best team, +10.2 point differential, beating every single team, 25-5 v. the "superior" west - is unparalleled by any other Boston champ of the decade. Only real competition, to me, is the 03 Pats. (Obviously the 07 Patriots would have been number one, but this is about champions.) I give it to the Cs because while both the 08 Cs and 03 Pats dominated the season and had some closer than expected matchups in the playoffs (Hawks and Cavs taking us to 7 / 17-14 v. Ten, 24-14 v. Ind, 32-29 last second FG win v. Car), the 08 Celtics thoroughly beat their two best opponents, Detroit and LA, while the Pats only narrowly beat the Panthers 32-29 on a last second FG.

That 03 Pats team featured our best defense ever, and a squad that rolled into the playoffs on a 12 game winning streak that continued through to the Super Bowl. The 04 team also had the league's 2nd best defense and 4th best offense, finished with the same 14-2 record and they had a more impressive playoff run, wrecking the Colts and the 15-1 Steelers in Pittsburgh. The 03 team played much closer games in the playoffs, but that 15 game run to end the 03 season was phenomenal, and the 03 14-2 was good for best in the NFL, while the 14-2 04 team was second to the Steelers.

The 01 Pats weren't really dominant, just a good, gritty team, and as good as they were, the 04 and 07 Sox weren't truly dominant either. The 04 Sox were the wild card team (though 2nd best in AL with 98 wins) and the 07 Sox tied for the best record in the majors, but weren't a historically great team (no 100-win season, actually fewer wins than 04 team).

So, in terms of how great the team was, I'd go:

1 08 Celtics (9 points)
2 03 Pats (
3 04 Pats (7)
4 04 Sox (6.5)
5 07 Sox (6)
6 01 Pats (4.5)

In terms of the feelings generated in the city, nothing will top the 04 Red Sox because of the historical significance, makeup of the team, and drama of the playoff run as a whole. They came back from down 3-0 to the Yankees. I mean, come on, the Sox are my third favorite Boston sports team but that was the most ridiculously awesome thing to behold (with maybe the most lovable group of players you could have). I also think the 01 Pats title was bigger for the city than this year's Celtics, because it was the city's first championship in almost 16 years, featured a rags-to-riches story for both the once-punchline franchise and the newly discovered sixth-round franchise QB, was a complete underdog victory, and featured a last-second score to clinch it.

I'd put this year's Celtics' win third, close to the 01 Pats. While that first title in 15 years thing is huge, the Celtics were second to last in the NBA - that turnaround is important, as is the fact that it was the first title in 22 years for Boston's best franchise. Tough to choose between the 03 and 04 Pats (truly dominant win v. first back to back titles in the city since the 60s) but I think the back to back victory and the establishment of a dynasty in the age of parity was bigger. The 07 Sox dominated MLB then came back from a 3-1 deficit to win it all, but it just didn't do as much for me, since it will be so difficult for any Sox to team to match the 04 squad.

So, in terms of the excitement generated for the city, I'd go:

1 04 Sox (10 points)
2 01 Pats (
3 08 Celtics (7)
4 04 Pats (6)
5 03 Pats (5)
5 07 Sox (5)

Combined greatness of team + greatness of win, my list:

1 04 Sox (16.5)
2 08 Celtics (16)
3 03 Pats (13)
3 04 Pats (13)
5 01 Pats (12.5)
6 07 Sox (11)

The 07 Pats would have been number one on both lists - a perfect 20.

A lot of people wouldn't put this Celtics team so high because of how poorly they played in Atlanta and in Cleveland. I mean, we were really really close to losing to the Cavs. If Sam doesn't make big shots at the end of Game 1, or Rondo doesn't get us going in Game 5, or Paul Pierce doesn't go off or even PJ Brown doesn't make some big plays in Game 7, the Celtics are done.

But, they didn't lose. They had those players, they made those plays, they won those series despite Ray Allen's struggles. And this team WAS historically great during the regular season. No other Boston team in the past ten years (except the 07 Pats) has dominated its league throughout the season the way the Celtics did. Maybe they were shaking off the rust those first two rounds and figuring out ways to win in their first playoff run. Whatever it was, when they finally played the teams they were waiting for, Detroit and LA, they proved they were FAR superior to those teams. Detroit tested us, but we took it from them, even when Bennett Salvatore tried to give the Pistons an extra game. And I agree with Bob Ryan - that LA series was a 6-game sweep. That 39 point win just ultimately proved how much better we were than the Lakers. Given how much the Celtics dominated the NBA this year, it was only appropriate they'd dominate its final game of the season.

[Kuberski33]

Boston Celtics Have won 17 nba championships where does this title rank among the 17 nba championships the celtics have won

To me, the most satisfying title of the Bird era was '84 not only because it was the Lakers, but for the way it happened.  Not only did they beat Magic, who I couldn't stand at the time but they also beat Pat Riley, who I still loathe to this day.

But this one ranks #2 -- because of how bad they've been the last 20+ years, the fact that winning a title so quickly while certainly possible, was to me very unexpected -- and because of the Pierce/KG/Ray Allen deal where they had never won a title and played on for the most part, mediocre to bad teams for much of their careers.  Toss in that it was against the Kobe/Phil Jackson Lakers who you can almost despise as much as the Showtime teams.

Plus the way the C's have energized a city -- one that you figured wouldn't get this excited given the success of the Sox and Pats. 

I missed the Russell era -- otherwise I might put the Balloon Game in there -- but I've been following the Celtics since the early 70's and this one's right up there with '84.

Plus I have to admit, I was one of those who was beginning to think we'd never win another title in any of our lifetimes.  In the David Stern era it's very hard to win it all unless you get lucky in terms of acquiring talent. 

If this is the only title they ultimately win, the PP/KG/Ray Allen era will still be a huge success -- thanks to this season.

[paintitgreen]

I can't comment on how things felt, like Kuberski, but I can try. Your 84 comments have me thinking about my choices. I think it's nearly impossible to compare teams across eras, especially being someone who didn't see them, but here's some relevant stats and interesting notes for the 17 Celtics championship teams:

56-57: 44-28, best record in NBA, 6 games ahead of 2nd place Syracuse, + 5.3 average margin of victory, 7-3 in playoffs (won 3-0 and 4-3); 1st Celtics title

58-59: 52-20, 1st in NBA, 3 GA of St. Louis, + 6.5 MOV, 8-3 playoffs (4-3 and 4-0); most wins by any team in NBA history, breaking record held by the 49-50 Syracuse Nationals (51-13), Minneapolis Lakers and Cincinnati Royals (51-17 each - strangely, they played different amounts of games in the same regular season); lower Win % than those teams at .722, though.

59-60: 59-16, 1st in NBA, 10 GA of Philadelphia, + 8.3 MOV, 8-5 playoffs (4-2 and 4-3); break previous season's record for most wins by any team in NBA history; at .787, Celtics don't match 50 Syracuse Nationals' .797 Win %, or the .817 Win % of Red Auerbach's 1946-47 Washington Capitals (49-11) from the first season of the BAA.

60-61: 57-22, 1st in NBA, 6 GA of St. Louis, + 5.6 MOV, 8-2 playoffs (4-1 and 4-1); 3rd consecutive title, matching record set by 51-52 to 53-54 Minneapolis Lakers

61-62: 60-20, 1st in NBA, 8 GA of LA, + 9.2 MOV, 8-6 playoffs (4-3 and 4-3); break own record for wins in NBA season; break record for best average margin of victory set by 49-50 Lakers (+ 8.4); 5th title, matching Minneapolis Lakers' record 5 titles (1 BAA, 4 NBA); 4th consecutive title, breaking Lakers' record.

62-63: 58-22, 1st in NBA, 5 GA of LA, +7.2 MOV, 8-5 playoffs (4-3 and 4-2); Cousy's last season; Celtics' 6th title, breaking Lakers' record.

63-64: 59-21, 1st in NBA, 4 GA of Cincinnati, + 7.9 MOV, 8-2 playoffs (4-1 and 4-1)

64-65: 62-18, 1st in NBA, 13 GA of LA, + 8.4 MOV, 8-4 playoffs (4-3 and 4-1); break own record for wins in NBA season; at .775, still behind 46-47 Capitals (49-11, .817), 49-50 Nationals (51-13, .797) and 59-60 Celtics (59-16, .787) for Win %; 2nd Celtics team to win 60 games, before any other franchise had won 60 once; 8th title in 16 NBA seasons (3 seasons of the BAA count toward NBA totals as well, meaning Cs had 8 of 19 officially).

65-66: 54-26, 2nd in NBA, 1 game behind 1st place Philadelphia, + 4.9 MOV, 11-6 playoffs (3-2, 4-1, 4-3); 1st Celtics title won after not having best record in NBA; 8th consecutive title, setting record not yet broken; Red Auerbach's final season coaching after winning 9 titles in 16 seasons in Boston.

[Note: 66-67 76ers set all time records with 68 wins, .840 Win % (68-13) and + 9.4 MOV. 66-67 Celtics go 60-21 in Russell's first year as player-coach.]

67-68: 54-28, 3rd in NBA, 8 GB Philadelphia, + 4.1 MOV, 12-7 playoffs (4-2, 4-3, 4-2); 10th title for Celtics; Russell's first title as player-coach.

68-69: 48-34, tied for 5th in NBA, 9 GB Baltimore, + 5.6 MOV, 12-6 playoffs (4-1, 4-2, 4-3); Russell's last season; Cs upset heavily favored 76ers (55-27), Knicks (54-28) and Lakers (55-27) to win 11th franchise title in Game 7 in Los Angeles; 11 titles for Celtics in 23 BAA/NBA seasons.

[Note: 70-71 Bucks set NBA record with +12.2 MOV. 71-72 Lakers set NBA records with 69 wins, .841 Win % (69-13) and + 12.3 MOV.]

[Note: 72-73 Celtics set franchise record with 68 wins and .829 Win %, but lose to the Knicks in 7 in the ECF.]

73-74: 56-26, 2nd in NBA, 3 GB Milwaukee, + 3.9 MOV, 12-6 playoffs (4-2, 4-1, 4-3); first title without Russell, 12th title overall.

[Note: 74-75 Celtics go 60-22, 5th Celtics team to win 60 games.]

75-76: 54-28, 2nd in NBA, 5 GB Golden State, + 2.3 MOV, 12-6 playoffs (4-2, 4-2, 4-2); featured "Greatest Game Ever Played."

80-81: 62-20, tied 1st in NBA with Philadelphia, + 5.9 MOV, 12-5 playoffs (4-0, 4-3, 4-2).

83-84: 62-20, 1st in NBA, 8 GA of LA, + 6.5 MOV, 15-8 playoffs (3-1, 4-3, 4-1, 4-3); 15th title; 8th Finals victory over Lakers without loss.

[Note: 84-85 Celtics become 10th in franchise history to win 60 games, but lose title to Lakers.]

85-86: 67-15, 1st in NBA, 5 GA of LA, + 9.4 MOV, 15-3 playoffs (3-0, 4-1, 4-0, 4-2); 16th title; set franchise record for MOV; 40-1 at home in regular season, 10-0 at home in playoffs.

[Note: 95-96 Bulls set NBA records with 72 wins, .878 Win % and tie record with +12.3 MOV.]

07-08: 66-16, 1st in NBA, 7 GA of Detroit, + 10.2 MOV, 16-10 playoffs (4-3, 4-3, 4-2, 4-2); 17th title; set franchise record for MOV; franchise's 12th 60-win season (Celtics won titles in 6 of those 12 seasons), 2 ahead of Lakers (10 60-win seasons); first title in 22 years, longest drought in franchise history; prevent Phil Jackson from breaking Red Auerbach's record of 9 titles as coach.


Now, I ranked them based purely on these numbers and the few external factors I know about the teams from books, ESPN Classic and NBA TV. I guess what I'm looking for is which team accomplished the most:

1) 86 Celtics - best single season Celtics team ever. Most wins of any Celtics championship team with 67, 2nd best MOV in Celtics history, they coasted through playoffs with more ease than any other Celtics team ever. Bummer they couldn't destroy the Lakers, but we all know they would have. Nobody could stop that team.

2) 62 Celtics - first team ever to win 60, crushed competition with + 9.2 MOV, went to 7 against Philly (Wilt and Arizin) and LA (Baylor and West), but those were good teams. Probably the best of the Cousy-Russell Celtics teams. This was their 4th title in a row, setting a record that still has not been matched (of course, the final number is 8, but nobody else has yet even won 4 in a row).

3) 65 Celtics - Russell at his apex, they won 62 games, finishing 13 games ahead of their nearest competitor and had a + 8.4 MOV. Got trouble from the 76ers (Wilt, Greer, Chet Walker) in the playoffs, but cruised through the Lakers in 5.

4) 08 Celtics - best MOV in Celtics history, 2nd most wins among Celtics championship teams, bonus because it was first title in 22 years AND they kept Jackson from passing Red on the Auerbach Parquet. Based on their regular season dominance and dominance of Detroit and LA, I think this is where they belong.

5) 60 Celtics - went 59-16, finished 10 games ahead of closest competition, + 8.3 MOV. Some trouble in playoffs (6 games with Philly, 7 with St. Louis) but dominant nonetheless.

6) 64 Celtics - first year after Cousy retired, they went 59-21, had a + 7.9 MOV and cruised through the playoffs, beating Oscar's Royals (maybe his best season with 31.4 PPG - his most ever - 11.0 APG and 9.9 RPG) and Wilt's Warriors in 5 games each to win their 6th straight.

7) 84 Celtics - Bird was in his MVP prime for this one, McHale was entering his prime and DJ emerged as the defensive stopper at guard. 62 wins, + 6.5 MOV, 8 games ahead of second place. Plus, they beat New York AND LA on the way to the title.

63 Celtics - in Cousy's last year, they won 58 games and had an average MOV of + 7.2. The playoffs were a little tough, but they took out the Lakers in 6 to win their 5th consecutive title.

9) 81 Celtics - Also won 62 games, as much because of Tiny, Max and Chief as Bird, who was only in his second year. Still, best record in league, + 5.9 MOV, and good playoff run, sweeping the Bulls and downing a great 76ers team in 7 before knocking off an inspired Rockets team led by Moses and Calvin Murphy in 6 games.

10) 66 Celtics - Less for numbers (54 wins, + 4.9 MOV, 2nd best record in league) than for three significant factors: 1) the first place 76ers, with Wilt, Greer, Chet Walker and Billy Cunningham, were supposed to take the Celtics' throne that year. Instead, Boston won in 5 outscoring Philly by almost 10 points per game; 2) this was the 8th consecutive title for the Celtics, an unprecedented and never-to-be-surpassed achievement; 3) heading into this, Auerbach's final season, he told everybody they had one last shot at him. Despite everybody taking their best shots at Red's Celtics, they won it all.

11) 69 Celtics - only 48-34, worst Win% and worst finish (tied for fifth in NBA). However, this team was actually better than its record (+ 5.6 MOV), and the way it exceeded playoff expectations in Russell's final season. First, they knocked off the favored Sixers in 5. Then, they beat the even more favored and stacked Knicks of Willis Reed, Cazzie Russell, Walt Bellamy, Walt Frazier and Dave DeBusschere in 6. Finally, they made LA keep their balloons in the rafters and silencing the USC marching band, beating Baylor, West, Wilt and the rest of the Lakers in Game 7 in LA. One of the best runs by a Celtics team ever.

12) 74 Celtics - record (56-26) and MOV (+ 3.9) aren't great, but this season was sandwiched between 68 and 60 win seasons for the Cowens-Havlicek-White crew of Coach Tommy, meaning the team was very good at the time. This season also featured a 102-87 win over the Kareem-Oscar Bucks in Game 7 in Milwaukee. Factor in how the games went (win by 15, lose in OT, win by 12, lose by 8, win by 9, lose by 1 in 2 OT, win by 15) and this was clearly the superior team in the series even though it went 7. The win also proved the Celtics could win without Russell. Think I might have ranked them too low. But this is a list of champions, so they're all great.
 
13) 59 Celtics - somewhat non-descript, but they had a very good 52-20 record, a + 6.5 MOV, and they swept the Lakers in the Finals. The first of 8 straight.

14) 61 Celtics - less wins (57-22) and lower MOV (+ 5.6) than some years, but when it counted, they cruised through the Nationals and Hawks in 5 games each to become the second team ever to win 3 in a row.

15) 68 Celtics - another team that without really "great" numbers but the circumstances make them. They were 54-28, with an average MOV of "only" + 4.1. However, they knocked off the seemingly invincible 62-20 76ers in Wilt's prime and earned Russell his first title as player-coach.

16) 57 Celtics - this was the first, which gets bonus points, but when it comes down to it, this was a 44-28 team. Its + 5.3 MOV is better than some teams I ranked higher (66, 68, 74) but the record is tough to get around. Kind of like the 01 Pats, I'd imagine. It was unreal, and we celebrated like crazy, but the team pales in comparison to what came later.

17) 76 Celtics - played the greatest game ever played and won on grit, but had only 54 wins and a +2.3 MOV when the league was at a low point. Still, they never went to a 7th game so they were an excellent team.

[Neurotic Guy]

Born in 1958, I've been alive for almost all 17, however, I remember only since about 1968. Memory being the key factor here, I'll place 1976 (the year I graduated high school) and 1981 as my favorites prior to this one. In 1981 I had graduated from college the year before and was living in an apartment in Brighton -- watching on my little TV with rabbit ears -- I remember watching every game of the Philly series (ECF?) with friends in my little apartment and believing that this was the best series I would ever see in my life.  Even though only 5 years had passed since the last title, it seemed an eternity -- the Wickes/Rowe era had left Celtics fans numb and frustrated as we were so used to winning.  Bird's arrival and the additions of McHale and Parrish were so exciting I just remember being completely enamored of this team and so glad to be a Celtic fan.

The 1976 memory was going out with friends on the night of the greatest game ever played against Phoenix.  We listened on the radio of my mother's station wagon.  I recall ending up in front of a pizza place listening in the car and being unable to leave the car (to get the pizza) for 3 overtimes --we were going bananas listening to Johnny!!!

All that said -- this year is definitely in my top 3 (along with the other 2 mentioned).  The era of the internet has brought me to this blog and has transformed the experience for me (in a good way). As soon as I figured out what blogging was and that I could chat with C's fans and get C's news during the doldrums of the off-season, I was hooked here -- and that was about 3 years ago.   I have been loyal throughout the last 22 years and was really the only remaining loyalist among my friends.  Suddenly, they all seem to be back aboard!