"9 out of 10 great players finish their career ungraciously."He describes the situation that players and their fans hate to witness: former superstars who just don't have what it takes anymore, yet still find themselves jogging up and down the court.
It happens to the best of them. Bird, Jordan, Miller et al- each one a special player yet ended their careers beat up and tired. Their jump shots weren't as crisp. They couldn't push it as hard on fast breaks. And the days of lighting up an opponent for 40 points any given night were long gone. Hall of Famers find a way to beat their toughest rivals, but there is one nemesis no one can beat, Father Time. He's a real bastard.
After the thrilling series against the New York Knicks, the Boston Celtics find themselves ousted after the first round of the playoffs for the first time in the modern Big/New Three era. And it flat out sucks. Boston fans have had it good for the last five years, so good we almost forget how bad we looked before Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen came to town. In the five seasons previous, the Celtics reached the Eastern Conference Finals 4 times, the NBA Finals twice, and scored a Finals victory over the Lakers the very first year of the Big Three. No team, however, stays on top for eternity.
The fact of the matter is, our stars are old, really old. KG, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry combine for over 100 years in age. The journey with Pierce and Garnett, specifically, has been special for Celtics fans. But this ride is coming to an end. This season's playoff run was very telling. Pierce is slow, wicked slow. He has a hard time keeping up defensively, and he can't seem to create his own shots as often as he used to. KG is tired. According to Doc Rivers, Garnett typically takes three hours to prepare and get loose for each game.
Maybe we were kidding ourselves when the Big Ticket signed his 3-year contract extension after last season. Perhaps the ride truly is over and Boston fan's are just in denial. I don't want to believe it, but Jackie MacMullan of ESPN Boston say's it's time for the aging stars to go. Logic and history tell us she's right, but our heart says no, not yet!
Doc said it best.
"We don't know how many more years we have left with them [Pierce and KG] in the league. You always want it to be perfect for them."We do want it to be perfect for them; a story book ending with Banner 18 hanging in the rafters as the veterans retire into the sunset. But this is real life, not Space Jam. If they want to stay competitive, the Celtics can't afford to keep players too long past their primes. Danny Ainge has some tough decisions to make. Do we keep Pierce, or buy him out for $5 million? If Garnett doesn't have much left in the tank, can you trade him for younger, potential stars?
How the front office handles these two future Hall of Famers will be indicative of the next two to five years. It will change how Doc coaches, it will change the style in which they play the game, and it will change they way we watch our beloved franchise. But no matter what happens this off-season, the legacy of Pierce, the Big Ticket, and Doc will remain: a great run conducted a by an even better coach-and-player combination.
Even if they finish ungraciously, this combination will be one of the best all time. Ain't that The Truth.
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