Twelve years ago today, the Boston Celtics brought change to the modern NBA

On July 31st, 2007 the Boston Celtics acquired power forward Kevin Garnett, thus completing their version of a Big-3 and ringing in a new era of “super teams” in the NBA.

Coming off of the 2006 season finishing with the second worst record in the NBA (24 – 58) franchise cornerstone for the Boston Celtics, Paul Pierce, made it evident that he was tired of the team’s underwhelming performances of late. Reportedly, he spoke with the front office and  demanded a trade if the franchise proved incapable of surrounding him with a supporting cast worthy of title contention.

Danny Ainge took little time to spring into action.

Soon after reports of Pierce’s distain surfaced, Boston made a draft night deal, sending No. 5 overall pick Jeff Green, Wally Szczerbiak, Delonte West and a 2008 second-round pick to the Seattle Supersonics in exchange for All-Star marksman Ray Allen and second round pick Glen Davis.

With the move, Pierce’s wishes of being surrounded by quality talent were starting to be answered. However, though they acquired arguably the best shooter in the league in the prime of his career, Boston seemed to have their sights set on something bigger — on someone bigger.

On July 31st, the franchise all but put Pierce’s weariness to rest, as Boston sent Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Ryan Gomes, Theo Ratliff, Sebastian Telfair and two future first-round picks to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for perennial All-Star and the 2004 NBA Most Valuable Player, Kevin Garnett. With this, the franchise solidified their own Big-3 to create a powerhouse out East to reign supreme in the NBA.

Heading into the 2007 season, the “Boston Three Party” — don’t we love word play? — were seen as legitimate title contenders…. and they never seemed to disappoint.

Together, Pierce, Garnett and Allen reached heights never before thought imaginable. All three were selected to the All-Star game while Garnett and Pierce finished the season on the All-NBA First and Third team’s, respectively.

Garnett also took home Defensive Player of the Year honors and finished third in MVP voting, as he averaged 18.8 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

The Celtics as a whole upped their win total by a whopping 42 games, going from the second worst team in the league in 2006-07 to the top seed in 2007-08.

The team’s regular season success seemed to transition perfectly into the postseason, as Boston made their way to their first NBA Finals appearance in 22 years. Though reigning MVP Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers managed to steamroll through the Western Conference playoffs, the Celtics seemed unfazed and fearless.

The trio managed to average a combined 60.3 points, 22.5 rebounds and 11.8 assists per game while on their way to the franchise’s first championship since 1986.

Twelve years ago today, the Boston Celtics acquired Kevin Garnett. Twelve years ago today the franchise made their final move towards attaining their record breaking championship total. And, twelve years ago today, “super teams” were re-introduced to the NBA.

For Celtics fans, July 31st marks a day in history that helped solidify the team’s 17th championship. For basketball fans, July 31st marks the start of the “Big-3” era in the modern NBA.

No matter which way you look at it, July 31st will always be a date synonymous with change in the worlds greatest basketball league.

And the Boston Celtics are the reason why.