Expert: Alessandro - 6/2/2004

Question
Have the Celtics ever gone 20 years between titles?  It sure looks like it'll take that long to get anything going (or more).  The Celts are still one of the legendary teams in the NBA but how long can fans survive on stories from the past?  Waht moves will they make in the off-season?  They seem to need help at every position.

Thanks Todd

Answer
Forget twenty years ... Between their first title in 1957 (the organization got its start in 1946) and their last in 1986, the Celtics hadn't gone more than five years in between championships; FIVE YEARS. It's hard to fathom such a winning tradition nowadays, but for a large chunk of the NBA's existence, Boston was the undisputed owner of the moniker "Title Town."

And while it seems hard now to believe the Celts will be hanging that 17th banner two years from now, I'd rather be a bit more optimistic ... There is a definite "youth movement" going on right now, with young players currently under contract (Ricky Davis, Kendrick Perkins) and three potential draft picks under our belts for this year.

Of course, youth rarely equals immediate success, so Ainge's much-ballyhooed "three year plan" might take a little longer to bear fruit. After all, we are still in DESPERATE need of a muscular center and talented point guard (something that pretty much EVERY team in the league needs), and those are two tough positions for any rookie to be forced into. They'll need time to mature and learn the NBA game, assuming that we're even able to sign/draft them ... While that's not the answer many Celtics fans want to hear, a little patience mixed with some luck may yet bring about another title sometime in the (hopefully not too distant) future.

Alessandro
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