Expert: Fabio Anderle - 6/20/2008

Question
I was looking at the 17 Celtics banners and it appears that the NBA circle on the banners is different.  For some years it is solid green, such as in 1959, 1962, 1963, 1964, while in other years, such as 1957, 1960, 1961, 1984 and 1986 it's white with green on the top and bottom.  Is there any reason for the different NBA logos?  Thanks for your help.

Answer
You are right, Gene,

I had noticed the fact myself a few years ago, and although I tried to find a reasonable explanation, I haven't been able yet.
In an old photo of the rafters of the Boston Garden I saw that all the banners had the solid green NBA circle, so I guess that that was the original aspect of the logo.
As Danny Shaughnessy wrote in his wonderful book Evergreen, "In 1957... Red Auerbach and (owner) Walter Brown contracted New England Flag and Banner Company of Watertown to stitch the first championship banner. It was made of cotton bunting and measured eight feet by twelve feet". When the Celtics won another championship in 1974, new owner of New England Flag Joe Studley found out that the banner blueprint was lost. The plans were eventually found. In the eighties every banner (now made of nylon) cost 475 $ each, a fact that must have made some thieves hungry, since some of the originals were stolen. Then-General Manager Jan Volk said "That's a terrible feeling when you look up and say, 'Oh, my gosh, 1957 is missing'".
So, in all this brouhaha of changes, blueprints lost and thieves, it is quite probable that one day somebody decided to stitch the new banners changing the NBA logo and making it white with the two green half circles on the top and on the bottom.
I hope this helps...



Fabio