1986, 1997, 2007, 2016

[Neurotic Guy]

I wrote an elaborate post and then hit my back page button inadvertently causing me to lose the post and leading to a lack of will to redo what I had written.  Suffice it to say that my summary below is probably more than what was needed -- so my error cost me a little time but saved whoever is reading this about 5 minutes of your life.  My gift to you.

Anyway... every 10 years or so since 1986 we've had a potentially franchise changing draft (a legit chance for luck to bring a franchise player to the C's).

In '86, right after a championship season, we stood at #2 in the draft from a brilliant trade with Seattle. The C's were going to end up with whoever remained after Cleveland selected Len Bias or Brad Daugherty.  We all know how that turned out -- sparking the longest championship drought in C's history, and allowing the Laker franchise to get within striking distance of the championships record.

In 1997, with the 2nd worst record but the most ping-pong balls when adding our Dallas pick, we wound up at #3 and #6. Instead of the big prize of Tim Duncan, we ended up with Mercer at 6 (a bust) and Chauncey at 3 (too slow to develop for the impatient and not GM-worthy Pitino).   

In '07, we road the 2nd worst record to another remarkably unlucky #5 lottery pick.  Perhaps more remarkable, though, was the ability of DA to turn that #5 pick into Ray Allen which set in motion the wheels to trade for KG.   This sequence finally brought the C's to a championship after the 22-year hiatus.

Now again C's fans sit on the precipice of a possible franchise changing lottery. With DA I have confidence that he'll make some lemonade out of whatever lemon we get, but I am still dreading that deflated feeling that I felt in the immediate aftermath of the '97 and '07 lotteries. It was brutal. And of course neither circumstance compares to the sad news that shortly followed our selection of Bias.

All I know is that a system based purely on luck will be a driving influence on my mood for at least a short while after May 17th.   I am expecting the typical disappontments: Lakers will move up (or pick in their projected slot) and the C's will move down. 

But the same old feeling of anticipation sits in the pit of my stomach so reminiscent of decades past - hoping for that one dang ping-pong ball to bring me some joy. 

[alldaboston]

This is a nice post. TP. I'm trying not to get too worked up, but I have a weird feeling this could be the year we get a boost.

Also,

I wrote an elaborate post and then hit my back page button inadvertently causing me to lose the post

couldn't you hit the forward button? I sometimes hit the back button when I'm writing a reply on here from my phone, and I just hit the forward button and my post is still there.

[GreenFaith1819]

Good Post.

Danny has basically traded away everything but the kitchen sink in gathering picks for BOS.

The odds are that SOMETHING good happens for us.

We have some options and I'm looking forward to next week and beyond.

[csfansince60s]

TP for the heartfelt post.....HOWEVER.....

I prefer to remember the 1978 Draft and the 1998 Draft, and '07 has to be in the + column, because of Ainge's magic as you alluded to. From '07, Durant (2), Horford (3) and Conley (4) have yet to lead to a ring, and Oden NEVER will. Jeff Green for Allen did, and the value of the PP/KG trade which indirectly came from that '08 championship may lead to others.

So, you can't really count '07's result as bad, just the draft slot we got from the ping pong balls, because if you did, you couldn't count the '86 Draft position as bad, just the result. And drafting a player like Reggie in '87 at #22 was good, but the result was bad.

Did anybody understand that? Because now I'm confused.

My point is that we haven't always had bad draft luck. It just feels that way because of the gut-kicks of Bias, Lewis and Duncan.

This is OUR time. #1 or #2 on 5/17.......I CAN FEEL IT!!!!!! 

[86MaxwellSmart]

Pavlov's dog couldn't have said it better.

[alldaboston]

Hopefully Wyc and Isaiah bring us luck. Wyc will be the team's representative inside the actual room where they do the ping pong balls (per Adam Himmelsbach)

Adam Himmelsbach
Adam Himmelsbach‏ @AdamHimmelsbach

Source says Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck to be the team's in-the-room rep during NBA draft lottery draw. (With Isaiah Thomas on the stage)

[Neurotic Guy]

This is a nice post. TP. I'm trying not to get too worked up, but I have a weird feeling this could be the year we get a boost.

Also,

I wrote an elaborate post and then hit my back page button inadvertently causing me to lose the post

couldn't you hit the forward button? I sometimes hit the back button when I'm writing a reply on here from my phone, and I just hit the forward button and my post is still there.

Ha - yeah, tried the forward button and the post was blank.  One of those you've got be kiddin me moments....

[Neurotic Guy]

TP for the heartfelt post.....HOWEVER.....

I prefer to remember the 1978 Draft and the 1998 Draft, and '07 has to be in the + column, because of Ainge's magic as you alluded to. From '07, Durant (2), Horford (3) and Conley (4) have yet to lead to a ring, and Oden NEVER will. Jeff Green for Allen did, and the value of the PP/KG trade which indirectly came from that '08 championship may lead to others.

So, you can't really count '07's result as bad, just the draft slot we got from the ping pong balls, because if you did, you couldn't count the '86 Draft position as bad, just the result. And drafting a player like Reggie in '87 at #22 was good, but the result was bad.

Did anybody understand that? Because now I'm confused.

My point is that we haven't always had bad draft luck. It just feels that way because of the gut-kicks of Bias, Lewis and Duncan.

This is OUR time. #1 or #2 on 5/17.......I CAN FEEL IT!!!!!!

I hear you. Some good luck with Pierce falling and Al Jefferson falling.  But I want a ping-pong ball!

[Big333223]

That '97 draft is hard. Not just because of losing Dunca but McGrady was taken #9. What if Pitino had taken Billups 3rd and McGrady 6th and then been patient. I can imagine a scenario where the team, with those two rookies, isn't better in that initial year, they still get the #10 spot in '98, draft Pierce, and enter the next century with a lineup of Billups, McGrady, Pierce, Walker. That's a lot of firepower.

Coulda, shoulda...

Anyway, I think the one nice thing to hang our hats on, for now, is that the last time the team crapped our in the draft, they made the absolute most of it by making the right deal with the pick. So no matter what happens, I'm hopeful Ainge and his team will make the most of it.

[86MaxwellSmart]

Weird thing is---I believe Danny Ainge is the one who drove Len Bias to the Boston airport---on his way back to Washington....where he died the next day....strange.

[csfansince60s]

Weird thing is---I believe Danny Ainge is the one who drove Len Bias to the Boston airport---on his way back to Washington....where he died the next day....strange.

So, so sad.

The day JFK was assassinated, 9/11 and the day Lennie Bias died. People do not forget where they were when they heard the news of those events on those days.

Still brings a sick feeling in my stomach.

[spikelovetheCelts]

Weird thing is---I believe Danny Ainge is the one who drove Len Bias to the Boston airport---on his way back to Washington....where he died the next day....strange.

So, so sad.

The day JFK was assassinated, 9/11 and the day Lennie Bias died. People do not forget where they were when they heard the news of those events on those days.

Still brings a sick feeling in my stomach.

Plus we then lost to the Mets in the World Series. I never drank so much.

[Big333223]

Weird thing is---I believe Danny Ainge is the one who drove Len Bias to the Boston airport---on his way back to Washington....where he died the next day....strange.

So, so sad.

The day JFK was assassinated, 9/11 and the day Lennie Bias died. People do not forget where they were when they heard the news of those events on those days.

Still brings a sick feeling in my stomach.

I was born in '88 so I have no conncetion to the time it happened, but I can tell you I remember where I was when I first read about Len Bias. I was in the back seat of my parents car, driving to my grandmother's house, and I was reading The Boston Celtics Encyclodpedia (I think that's what it was called). It must have been the summer of '02 because I got really into the team after their playoff run that season.

[csfansince60s]

Weird thing is---I believe Danny Ainge is the one who drove Len Bias to the Boston airport---on his way back to Washington....where he died the next day....strange.

So, so sad.

The day JFK was assassinated, 9/11 and the day Lennie Bias died. People do not forget where they were when they heard the news of those events on those days.

Still brings a sick feeling in my stomach.

I was born in '88 so I have no conncetion to the time it happened, but I can tell you I remember where I was when I first read about Len Bias. I was in the back seat of my parents car, driving to my grandmother's house, and I was reading The Boston Celtics Encyclodpedia (I think that's what it was called). It must have been the summer of '02 because I got really into the team after their playoff run that season.

TP....reading about it or hearing about it....wow, what a senseless waste....and not just for Bias and his family, but for the Celtic family.

Not only would the Big 3s careers be lengthened, but there would've been more Cs championships and it would've been Bias/Jordan, just like Magic/Bird. Devastating.

[Eja117]

Pavlov's dog couldn't have said it better.

To be fair that dog was conditioned to reality