Boston Celtics Top Five Games of The Decade
By bpaul
As we wrap up a decade of ups and downs for the Boston Celtics I thought it would be a good time to look at some of the games that made the decade what it was. During the early part of the decade there really wasn’t much happening in the Celtics organization. There was a Paul Pierce game winner every so often, or something of that sorts, but nothing extraordinary that really got us fans saying WOW. Since the acquisition of Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett we have seen so many exciting games it is really hard to choose which one’s deserve to make our top five. We finally came to a conclusion and here are our top five games of the decade.
1. 2008 NBA Final Game Six – June 17, 2008 – Boston, MA
Is there any other game that defines this decade better than game six of the 2008 NBA finals? Is there anything better than defeating the Lakers by 39 points and clinching the NBA finals on our home court? The answer to both of these questions are no. This game will forever go down as the greatest game of the decade. And remember… ANYTHINGS POSSIBLE!!!
2. 2002 Eastern Conference Finals Game 3 – May 25, 2002
If the Celtics would have gone on to win the NBA championship in 2002 this game may have gone down as the best of the decade. In the game the Celtics player of the decade, Paul Pierce, led the Celtics to one of the most impressive fourth quarter comebacks in NBA playoff history. The entire Garden crowd was standing during the fourth quarter rallying the troops to a 41-15 fourth quarter advantage. Do yourself a favor and watch this video, it will give you goose bumps.
3. 2008 Eastern Conference Finals Game Seven – May 18, 2008
Sometimes us Celtics fans over look the fact that if we lost this game against Cleveland there wouldn’t have been a 17th banner. This game was a classic as two of the best players in the game, Paul Pierce and Lebron James went back and forth at each other. P.J Brown hit a crucial jump shot and Pierce, with Red Auerbach watching in the sky, hit a crucial free throw down the stretch to secure the Celtics spot in the 2008 NBA Finals.
4. Paul Pierce Game Winner in Washington – March 7, 2006
In one of the worst seasons in franchise history, Paul Pierce gave Celtics fans something to cheer about in a late season game against the Wizards. Pierce struggled for a large portion of this game but showed up when it mattered, hitting a crazy game winner that gave the Celtics one of their 24 wins that year. Other notable players on the floor that day include Al Jefferson, Orien Greene, Ryan Gomes, and Wally Szczerbiak (No wonder why the C’s lost 18 straight that year).
5. Ray Allen Game Winner 2009 Game Two vs. Chicago – April 20, 2009
Game two of the seven game series against the Chicago Bulls was just the beginning of one of the most historic series in playoff history. The series included seven overtimes in all, but in this game Ray Allen ended it early with a game winning three pointer to tie the series up at one game apiece. Just one of the classic buzzer beaters we have seen from Jesus Shuttlesworth during his stay in Boston.
Of course there could be other games thrown into this list but these are the five games that really stuck out to us here at Hardwood Houdini. If you know of another classic game of the decade let us know by dropping a comment. We hope you enjoyed this best of the decade list, make sure to also check out our All-Decade Green Team.