Needless to say, any NBA fan must know this team very well.
The Celtics are almost an encyclopedia of the NBA. Their history is a history of winning championships and a history of stars. In the 2011 All-Star Game, the Celtics staged a rare scene when all four of the team's top players were selected to the All-Star Game.
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But in fact, the Celtics were not a strong team when they were first established.
In 1946, 11 major ice hockey owners discussed the establishment of a new basketball league, so the Baa came into being. As we all know, this league is the predecessor of the current NBA. The Celtics were one of the original 11 teams of the Baa.
Since there were many Irish immigrants in Boston, many of whom were Celtics, the team's name was called "Original Celtics" when it was first established, and was later shortened to "Celtics."
After the league was established, the Celtics had a poor record in the first few years. From 1946 to 1950, they failed to enter the playoffs.
The rise of the Celtics is actually related to the arrival of one person.
This person is the famous Cardinal Auerbach.
At the beginning of the 1950-1951 season, the Celtics made a series of personnel changes, and the most important one was the invitation to Auerbach.
Another very important change is that the Celtics acquired Bob Cousy.
Cousy was a rookie in 1950. At that time, there were actually three players for the Knicks, Warriors and Celtics to choose from. As a result, no one wanted the rookie Cousy, so they had to draw lots to decide.
The Celtics were "unfortunate" to get Cousy.
However, facts have proven that this is not the Celtics' misfortune, but their luck. Now, no one knows who those two players are, but Cousy's name has always been in people's mind.
echoed in the ears.
Cousy brought behind-the-back passing into the league, which was refreshing. In his rookie season, Cousy scored 15.6 points and the league's first 4.9 assists per game. In the end, he led the Celtics to 39 wins and 30 losses.
Ended the season. Made it to the playoffs.
The arrival of Cousy and Auerbach represents the dormancy of the Celtics, which is slowly coming to an end.
After ten years of dormancy, it was not until the 1956-1957 season that the Celtics began their rise after acquiring Bill Russell and Tom Hainsohn.
This season, the Celtics had a neat lineup, entering the playoffs with the league's best record of 47 wins and 28 losses, and smoothly reaching the finals. The Celtics and the St. Louis Hawks are now the Atlanta Hawks.
The predecessor, which was tied in the first 6 games, became the 7th game). His shot at the last minute bounced a few times on the rim and failed to score in the end. The Celtics narrowly won 125-123 and won the first place in the team.
A championship. This was the beginning of the Celtics dynasty and the Celtics' first championship. From then on, they started their own Celtics dynasty!
From the moment they won their first championship, the Celtics were unstoppable. From 1959 to 1966, the Boston Celtics completed an unprecedented eight consecutive championships in the league.
This record is also known as the most difficult record to surpass in the current NBA. There is no one. In comparison, the extremely difficult records such as Coach Chamberlain's 100 points in a single game and Big O's season average of triple-doubles all seem a bit difficult.
It's child's play.
After eight consecutive championships, in the 1966-1967 season, many Celtics veterans retired. Cousy, Heinsohn, etc. all left the team. Auerbach also resigned as head coach and assumed the administrative management position of the team.
Russell took over as the team's head coach, thus becoming the first black coach in NBA history.
This year, the Celtics met the Philadelphia 76ers led by coach Wilt Chamberlain in the Eastern Conference Finals. In Game 7, they lost 106 to 108 to the Philadelphia 76ers and lost the championship. However, subsequently
In 1968 and 1969, the Celtics won the NBA Finals twice in succession. Bill Russell also achieved his own legend of the Lord of the Rings.
In the 1970s, the original main players of the Boston Celtics retired one after another. Relying on the support of John Havlicek and Dave Cowens, they only won the championship twice in 1974 and 1976. For
For the Celtics, who have won eight consecutive championships, such a record can be said to be unsatisfactory.
But immediately, they rose again. This rise was also due to the arrival of a crucial hero.
In 1978, Auerbach had a unique vision. The Celtics selected "Big Bird" Larry Bird through the draft. This draft ushered in a new round of talent for the Celtics.
brilliant.
During that period, the Celtics had a luxurious lineup. In addition to Bird, they also had Chief Robert Parish, Kevin McHale, Dennis Johnson, and Danny Ainge.
All-star players such as "Red-haired Giant Ape" Bill Walton. The entire NBA in the 1980s became an era in which the Celtics and Lakers took turns taking charge. The confrontation between "Big Bird" Bird and "Magic" Johnson became the
The biggest highlight of the NBA is also starting from this time. The current president David Stern stepped onto the stage and used the duel between black and white to bring the NBA to a new peak. Many people said that that was
Before the Jordan era, the NBA's first peak!
During that period, the Celtics won three championships, the last one in the 1985-1986 season. Although they also made it to the Finals in 1987, they lost the championship to the Lakers 2:4.
From that point on, the Celtics began to go downhill.
When Larry Bird retired in 1992, the Celtics became a weakling in the Eastern Conference.
Starting from the 1995-1996 season, the Celtics failed to enter the playoffs for six consecutive years. This is a completely shameful record for the Celtics.
It wasn't until the 2001-2002 season that the Celtics entered the playoffs again under the leadership of the twin stars Pierce and Anthony Walker. That year they reached the Eastern Conference Finals, but lost to the New Jersey Nets 2:4.
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This season, Celtics fans saw hope of revival, but to their disappointment, the team went downhill again after that.
By the 2006-07 season, the Celtics had fallen to the bottom of the Eastern Conference. Due to Pierce's injury, they set a shameful record of 18 consecutive losses.
In the summer of 2007, the Celtics acquired the league's top marksman Ray Allen and top power forward Kevin Garnett through trade during the draft, and formed a team with the original star all-around small forward Paul Pierce.
Luxurious "Big Three" lineup.
In the 2007-08 season, the Celtics' record rose from the worst in the league to the best in the league, achieving an impressive record of 66 wins and 16 losses. In the end, they defeated the Lakers 4-2 and won the 17th NBA championship in team history.
Champion, Paul Pierce won the Finals MVP.
In the 2008-2009 season, the Celtics continued to make great progress. Although Garnett missed many games due to injury in the late regular season, they still achieved an impressive record of 62 wins and 20 losses. In the subsequent playoffs, they encountered
The Bulls resisted tenaciously and won after 7 games. But in the second round, they met the Magic with "Warcraft" Howard. In the end, they were unfortunately eliminated 3-4. (Three "firsts" - first in record)
, first in defense, first in win difference in two seasons)
In the 2009-2010 season, the Celtics got the roaring Wallace, and the severely aging Celtics achieved fourth place in the Eastern Conference. In the playoffs, the Celtics played even better, all the way
After passing the test, he even avenged his humiliation in the Eastern Conference finals, defeating the Orlando Magic led by Howard Howard and becoming the Eastern Conference champion. In the finals, he met the Lakers again in 7 games and lost 3-4, missing the championship.
Pass by.
In the 2010-2011 season, although Wallace retired, the Celtics got Shaquille O'Neal. Coupled with Rondo's rapid improvement, the Celtics' strength was greatly improved. Therefore, most of the teams sitting first in the Eastern Conference
Position. However, fatigue after the All-Star Game forced the team to fall from the first position to third place. Although they swept the New York Knicks led by Anthony and Stoudemire in the first round, they faced the rising Heat in the second round.
The new Big Three and the old Big Three were also powerless. Even if Rondo staged the "Return of the One-Armed King" in the third game, the good situation could not be restored. In the end, the Celtics lost 1-4 to Miami, ending the 2010-2011 season early.
The journey to the playoffs.
In the 2011-2012 season, after the NBA lockout ended, the Celtics' record was never ideal. They suffered a losing streak in the early stage and were in danger of the playoffs. This was the last season for the three giants to fight side by side. Main forward Jeff Green suffered from heart problems.
The season was reimbursed, and substitutes Bradley, Cox and Shaq were lost due to injuries. The Big Three were in worse shape than before, but in the end they still entered the playoffs as fourth in the Eastern Conference without being favored.
.In the first round of the playoffs, they faced off against the Atlanta Hawks, the potential fifth team in the Eastern Conference. After losing their first home game and falling behind by a big margin and with main player Rondo suspended, Truth Pierce stepped up and led the team to two consecutive games.
In the end, they defeated the Hawks 4:2. In the second round, they met the old rival Philadelphia 76ers who created the miracle of black 8. The two sides fought fiercely for 7 games. In the end, the Celtics defeated their opponents and advanced to join the favorite Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. The old Big Three
Rising up to his might, Rondo also scored a triple-double with shocking explosiveness, scoring 44 points in the second game. After losing two consecutive away games, he returned to North Shore Garden and struggled to make the score 2:2. After returning to Miami, he returned to Miami.
He scored one game and pushed the Heat over the cliff with a big score of 3:2. Although the Celtics, who were short of major generals in the end, could not withstand the impact of the Heat's young energy in the tiebreaker, they unfortunately lost, but they won the game.
The respect of the fans is an honor even in defeat.
This is all Chen Jie’s memories of the Celtics before he traveled through time.
He also knows that now, this season, the Celtics are continuing to decline. Although they are not at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, they have become a weak team that is completely unworthy of their jersey!
During the break between sessions, Scales did not plan any more tactics. By this time, in fact, more tactics were useless.
The game has reached this point. In the third quarter, after Chen Jie faced off against the Celtics alone, both sides became jealous.
Now, the Bulls players on the field are mainly responsible for defending and grabbing the boss. They help Chen Jie contain the defensive players when attacking and have no other role.
Although the Celtics seem to have several players still scoring, such as Gary Payton and others, Skiles and Chen Jie also know that in the fourth quarter, they can only rely on Paul Pierce.
At this time, it is time to look at the individual abilities of the stars. Occasionally, one or two role players may emerge as saviors, but such things are rare. Moreover, it cannot be arranged by tactics.
In the first three minutes of the fourth quarter, Paul Pierce had been sitting on the bench. It seemed that Rivers was also preparing to let him come on for a direct victory.
Chen Jie didn't rest because he couldn't rest now. Unlike Paul Pierce, the Celtics could still attack without him, but without Chen Jie, the Bulls' young players couldn't find their way at all.
Just as Pippen thought, the Bulls are now a group of talented young people, young people with promise. But few of them can fight tough battles.
Chen Jie counts as one, but besides Chen Jie, who else is there?
Luer Deng? Duhon? Hinrich? Or maybe Chandler?
These people may provide support to Chen Jie at critical moments, but it is still far from being able to take the lead alone.
As a rookie, Chen Jie is so valued by the team and his importance to the team is so high. This is a challenge and an opportunity.
At least, if this continues, there is no doubt that Chen Jie will become a superstar in the future. However, with such high-intensity competition and playing like this as soon as he enters the league, it is also surprising how long Chen Jie's career will be.
Very worried.
But now, this is not the time to think about it.
In the eyes of Chen Jie, Skiles, and all the fans at the United Center, what is more important at this moment is to win this game first.
In three minutes, Chen Jie added five more points. The score in this game has reached 45 points, only six points away from his career high score of 51 points.
If the current situation continues, it is certain that Chen Jie will break the highest score in his career. The only question is how many points Chen Jie can score.
60 points? Or more?
This year, Kobe has yet to score 81 points, and Zhang Dashuai's 100 points is regarded as an unsurpassable record.
These days, any player who scores more than 60 points is enough to become a long-lasting classic in the league. Even 50 points is enough to shock the league, just like the game when Chen Jie scored 51 points.
If Chen Jie can score 60 points in this game, you can imagine how panic the league will fall into. The popularity of Chen Jie as a rookie and the importance other teams attach to him will definitely reach a new level.
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Perhaps even at that time, Chen Jie's status in the league could be compared with super scorers such as Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, and Tracy McGrady.
60 points can be said to be a hurdle. It is completely different from 50 points. Which player who scores 60 points is not a superstar? Is he not a future Hall of Fame player?
In this game, the fans at the United Center were not only looking forward to victory, but also looking forward to Chen Jie scoring 60 points.
United Center, it has been a long time since I tasted what it feels like to have a player score 60 points.
Since Jordan retired, no Bulls player has scored 60 points at the United Center.
Even when Jordan was here, he rarely scored 60 points. At that time, the defensive intensity of the league was not the same as it is now.
If Chen Jie can score 60 points in this game, then there is no doubt that no matter how he falls in the future, the United Center and the Chicago Bulls will never forget him.
Ever since Michael Jordan scored 60 points against the Orlando Magic in 1993, the United Center has been waiting for this kind of individual heroics for a long time.
In fact, the entire alliance has been looking forward to it for a long time.
After entering 2000, there have been very few 60-point performances. In March of this year, Tracy McGrady scored 62 points in a game against the Wizards, which is the closest 60+ performance to date.
Counting further back, in 2000, Shaquille O'Neal scored 61 points against the city rival Clippers.
After entering the new century, NBA has only had two 60+ performances in total. If Chen Jie can do it today, then he will be the third player in the new century to score 60 points in a single game.
Such an honor is even greater than winning this game, entering the playoffs, and being an All-Star!
Many fans at the United Center actually expected Chen Jie to score 60 points rather than win the game.
But at this time, Chen Jie, who was dribbling the ball on the court looking for a breakthrough opportunity, didn't know that many people had such expectations for him.
In his heart, the first priority is to win this game.
With eight minutes and 36 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the Bulls led by four points, 78 to 74.
This score is very low. Moreover, out of the 78 points, 45 points and nearly two-thirds of the points were scored by Chen Jie.
From this data, we can see what the plot of this game is like. (To be continued...)
