With titans Bill Russell and John Havlicek on hand for the occasion, the new Garden filled with chants of, "Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.!"
in the moments before tipoff.
And so the Celtics did, clinching their 17th NBA title Tuesday night in a manner consistent with their glorious past.
Dominant.
For the first time since 1986, order was restored to the basketball universe. And somewhere in that universe, Red Auerbach must have fired up a cigar.
With an emotional performance from Kevin Garnett -- the cornerstone of the Celtics' revival from a 24-win team to NBA champions in one year -- and another stifling defensive stand, the Celtics thrashed the Lakers, 131-92, in Game 6 to win the best-of-seven championship series, 4-2.
"I'm not living under the shadows of the other greats now,"
series MVP Paul Pierce said. "If I was going to be one of the best Celtics to ever play, I was going to have to put up a banner."
Where to begin on the list of redemptive powers that prevailed in a series that pitted these storied rivals who have totaled 31 of the 62 NBA titles? From Danny Ainge's bold moves to acquire Garnett and Ray Allen last summer, to the quirky but effective ownership group led by lifelong New England sports fan Wyc Grousbeck, to the steady Doc Rivers prevailing over Phil Jackson -- it all somehow seemed to fit so neatly into Celtics lore.
Rivers' first thoughts after the game, his collar stained orange from a Gatorade bath, turned to his late father, Grady, who passed away in November.
"The first thing I thought of was, 'What would dad say?'"
said Rivers, choking up with emotion. "What he probably would say was, 'It's about time. What have you been waiting for?'"
Rivers not only guided Garnett, Allen, and long-suffering Pierce to their first championship, but he also denied Jackson the opportunity to pass Auerbach in the process. Jackson remains tied with the Celtics' legendary coach with nine championships.
"This one's for Red,"
Grousbeck said after hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
Auerbach, whose signature graced the parquet floor near midcourt, would've been proud of the Celtics' defense last night, which held Kobe Bryant to 22 points on 7-for-22 shooting from the field. He would've embraced Pierce, Garnett, and Allen, too - not to mention role players like P.J. Brown, James Posey, Leon Powe, and Glen "Big Baby"
Davis, whose quality minutes off the bench seemed cut from the old-time Celtics cloth.
Garnett had 26 points and 14 rebounds, Pierce added 17 points and 10 assists, and Allen overcame a family matter that kept him in Los Angeles for the past two days - plus a left eye injury in the first quarter - to contribute 26 points and tie a Finals record with seven three-pointers. Rajon Rondo added 21 points and eights assists, fighting through an ankle injury to eviscerate the Lakers' defense with dribble-penetration.
"He was the guy out there that made the plays, got the steals, pushed their offense into overdrive, and created havoc for us,"
Jackson said.
Rondo had six of the Celtics' 18 steals, which surpassed the Finals record of 17 by Golden State against Washington in 1975. The 39-point margin of victory was the largest in a Finals-clinching game, surpassing the Celtics' 33-point victory over the Lakers in 1965.
Not even a four-hour delay flying out of L.A. Monday could derail the Celtics, who seemed pre-ordained champions from the opening tip of the season and endured seven-game scares from Atlanta and Cleveland in the first two rounds.
"That's what makes all the other moments so sweet,"
Pierce said, "being at rock bottom a year ago today and climbing all the way to the top."
Equally important as the contributions from the Big Three was the defensive mastery on Bryant, who managed only three field goals after the first quarter. Bryant went to the bench in the fourth quarter to chants of, "Where is Ko-be?"
With the building pulsating with anticipation, Grousbeck was a nervous wreck on the floor during pregame festivities, fidgeting with his blazer sleeves and unwilling to project what his emotions might be in a few hours.
"I don't want to jinx it,"
Grousbeck said, betraying his roots as a homegrown New Englander.
The Celtics survived an early barrage from Bryant, who made three deep three-pointers in the first quarter. Boston had to endure another injury scare when Allen, who'd spent the past two days tending to a family matter in Los Angeles, got poked in the eye by Lamar Odom with 4:30 left in the first quarter.
Allen stayed . . . and stayed . . . and stayed in the locker room, but finally re-emerged with about five minutes left in the second quarter after seeing an eye specialist. By the time he returned to the floor with 4:44 left in the half, his teammates had built a 12-point lead, 43-31. That was only a preview. Bryant hit four of his first five shots from the field but missed 14 of his last 17.
Posey's three-pointer made it 43-28 with 5:29 left in the quarter, but the signature play was Garnett's impersonation of George Gervin in the final minute of the half. With 47.3 seconds left, Garnett hung in the air palming the ball, absorbed a foul from Odom and kissed the ball one-handed off the glass for a three-point play that gave Boston a 56-35 lead. It was 58-35 at halftime on the strength of a 26-6 run to close the quarter.
Rivers didn't want to hear about any postgame celebration or parade plans before the game, so he wasn't sure how he'd handle the finals minutes; as a worrywart coach, he probably was expecting anything but a blowout. But he had the presence of mind to concoct a curtain-call plan for his Big Three with 61 seconds left, removing Garnett, Allen, and Pierce together.
"They all said, 'Thank you,' and I said, 'Thank you,' back,"
Rivers said. "… Money can buy you everything, except for the trophy. And the only way to get that is to lean on somebody."
On the shoulders of legends, and those of each other.
