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INDULGE
me for one more week. The last couple have been so made
of leprechaun stuff that I’m like Alice traipsing
through Wonderland. As in, will wonders never cease?
OK, I’m
still thinking Green. And Black and Blue. And that’s
because my two paradisos came together, all in one
magical (Sunday) afternoon.
Imagine,
having Pacman and the Celtics together in one locker
room. I mean, who would ever have thought? Boxing and
basketball together amid the healthy-sick smell of
liniment and soap. My two idols encased in one rare,
sports peapod. And the unbelievable thing is, they truly
dig each other—and one another.
WHAT a
rare visual moment that was: The lanky, ebony Kevin
Garnett high-fiving it with the diminutive, power bundle
that is Manny Pacquiao. (Wow.) And the National
Basketball Association (NBA) champs Paul Pierce, Ray
Allen, Sam Cassell, Rajon Rondo, Kendrick Perkins, Tony
Allen and more Greens in the energy circle, chanting
“Manny! Manny! Manny!”
It is a
first time ever for NBA champs to be present as a team
in a world championship fight. Much more come together
to sip spiritual champagne in the boxing champ’s locker,
postbout. I have never seen anything like it before. I
am awed and happy.
THERE’S
something about 2008 that evokes, or makes, history. For
the NBA, it brought back classic Celtics-Lakers
rivalry—an epic that was 22 years in the making. It also
enabled the Celts to hang elusive No. 17 up there in
their rafters, denying Phil Jackson the distinction of
surpassing Red Auerbach’s championship record. And for
Manny Pacquiao, it made him the first Asian boxer ever
to savor the rarefied air of having four different
boxing championships—a whole wardrobe of belts and honor
sans peer in this part of the world. What an honor for
Filipinos!
FOR that
matter, there is something about Boston that takes the
cake, sports-wise. It is a city swimming in championship
glory these days. The New England Patriots did it first
in 2002, when they won their first National Football
League title. Then the Red Sox defied the odds, nixed
the jinx and brought an 86-year drought to an end in
2004. (They did it again last year, remember? Swept the
Denver Rockies right at Coors field in four games in
September.)
Now it’s
the Celtics’ turn to rain confetti down on the city. It
was another reversal of fortune for a team that—like the
Sox—lived through a curse, ever since Len Bias dropped
dead in a basketball court some 20 years ago.
EVERYBODY’S hailed the Big Three, The Truth, the Boston
fans, Doc Rivers, the team’s role players, the bench,
team leadership and the sacrifice for No. 17. But here’s
a tribute to Danny Ainge—the engineer of this historic
team turnaround that made the impossible possible.
“When
you celebrate this championship, you have to think of
Danny Ainge, a feisty member of the 1986 team who was
entrusted with the team’s basketball operations and
faced many potentially franchise-altering decisions.
Inheriting an aging team that had made the improbable
run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2002, Ainge blew
the team up and started the rebuilding process, trading
a mercurial star in Antoine Walker who’d become the face
of the franchise and opting to build instead around Paul
Pierce, who was just coming into his own.
“Ainge
began accumulating draft picks and young talent in the
hopes of one day being in a position to make the Celtics
a championship contender. Along the way, the team
developed some talented players while trying to bring in
character veterans. The young Celtics took their lumps,
as did Ainge, coach Rivers and everyone associated with
the team. Pierce began to lose faith and started to
reconsider his future with the Celtics, placing the team
at the crosswords a little quicker than anyone had
probably imagined.” (Celtics.com)
NOW, in
the aftermath, Pierce has earned his place in “the
pantheon of Celtics greats.” There is a strong
likelihood, the web site says, “that Pierce, who
currently ranks seventh all-time in franchise scoring,
someday will see his No. 34 join banner 17 in the
rafters.”
He, the
Celts and the Pacman have all earned their place in
sports annals. These are special times, indeed.
OVERTIME.
Watch out for the UAAP opening on Saturday, July 5. I
heard it’s going to be a Show. Of course, tickets for
the Ateneo-La Salle game on Sunday have been out of
stock since early this week. Ah, happy days are here
again. Will wonders never cease? |
