The Celtics have won 16 world championships, more than any team in the NBA, but the Lakers have the second most with 14. They are also the only two teams with 300 postseason victories. The Lakers have 395 playoff wins, and the Celtics earned their 300th when they knocked out the Pistons. JH/Metro
NBA. There’s nothing shy about the grin on Paul Pierce’s face when he shares his memories of growing up in Los Angeles and rooting for the Lakers.
Even while wearing some new Eastern Conference Champions garb with the Celtics’ logo predominantly displayed, Pierce won’t lie about the disdain he once felt for the franchise he helped turn around.
“It’s ironic being a Celtic,” Pierce said after the C’s eliminated the Pistons on Friday. “Now, I’m playing against the Lakers in the Finals. As a kid, I hated the Celtics. I’m going back home to play against my team that I grew up watching. It’s a dream come true. That rivalry really revolutionized the game of basketball, and now I’m a part of it.”
The classic rivals will meet in the NBA Finals for the 10th time since the Lakers moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles prior to the 1960-61 season, and the 11th time overall. The Celtics have won eight of those series, but Pierce remembers the Lakers taking control of the rivalry in the 1980s, when they won two of the teams’ three Finals meetings.
After the league struggled in the 1970s with public bouts of drug abuse and direct competition with the American Basketball Association, the Celtics and Lakers provided a revitalization, largely due to the star power on each team, which was accentuated by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson.
There had been similar issues with the NBA since Michael Jordan ended his career with the Bulls a decade ago, and the league’s newest batch of stars were making louder noise in the crime log than sports section. But there are echoes across the league this year that the NBA has again reached the peak of its popularity.
Now, with Pierce’s Celtics and Kobe Bryant’s Lakers ready to dominate the center stage, a new generation of hatred will develop as a beautiful rivalry is restored.
“I’m just happy to be a part of this,” Pierce said. “It’s been a long process. I can write a whole book on my emotions right now, but I’m just happy to be in this position still with the Boston Celtics.”