Boston Celtics: 4 Cs related facts after Lakers win 2020 NBA Finals

Now with the Los Angeles Lakers winning the 2020 NBA Finals, there are 4 specific Boston Celtics related facts that automatically catch the Houdini’s eye.

Though many Boston Celtics fans had high hopes that their favorite franchise would be bringing this year’s Larry O’Brien trophy back to Beantown, it is their historic rival, the Los Angeles Lakers, who are now officially dubbed 2020 NBA Champions.

Downing the over-achieving and praise-deserving Miami Heat in six-games, LeBron James and co. led La La Land to perhaps one of the most challenging title-runs in league history. This series win makes it 10 years since they last were deemed “world champions” and the first time in 20 years where they won it all without the likes of the late/ great Kobe Bryant leading the way.

With L.A. winning championship number 17, not only did they impact history amongst their own franchise but, also, within the Boston Celtics’ as well. Being that both teams are the two “poster children” of the NBA, they will forever be intertwined in regard to their successes.

This latest title for the Lakers presents 4 very interesting facts that relate to the Los Angeles v.s. Boston rivalry.

Fact No. 1) Boston is no longer the “winningest franchise” in league history

All season long, the Houdini has gotten a kick out of referring to the Boston Celtics as the “winningest franchise” in NBA history. This moniker came with a great deal of pride for shamrocks fans all across the globe.

The fact that if you combined the total titles between the third, fourth, and fifth-placed teams on the all-time championships list (Golden State Warriors, Chicago Bulls, and Philadelphia 76ers, respectively) and it added up to the same number of wins the Cs had was a fun fact fans would constantly find themselves looking to share to the world.

Now that the Los Angeles Lakers have won this year’s Finals, they’ve officially tied Boston with 17 total wins. With this, we can no longer claim them to be the winningest franchise in league history which, while it may not be a big deal in the grand scheme of things, it still is a bothersome reality to accept.

Fact No. 2) First time since 1963 where Cs don’t lead NBA in titles

The “winningest franchise” title was bestowed to the Boston Celtics back in 1963 when they had just won championship number six, their fifth in a row.

They accomplished this feat by actually besting the Lakers in six games and, in turn, surpassed L.A.’s previous record of five titles. These two, along with the Warriors, were the only teams in the league at the time to have won multiple championships.

Fact No. 3) Rojan Rondo becomes 2nd player to win with both Cs and L.A.

One of my personal favorite Boston Celtics of all time, and a player we believe should be on Danny Ainge’s radar this offseason, Rajon Rondo famously has suited up for both the Cs and the Los Angeles Lakers, after signing a two-year, $5.18M contract with the franchise back in the summer of 2018.

It only took the point guard a year upon being drafted to receive the designation of NBA Champion after Beantown defeated the Lakers in six games back in the 2008 NBA Finals. Now, 12 years later, he has won his second ring with L.A., making him just the second player in league history to win a title with both franchises.

The only other player to do so was Clyde Lovellette, who played center alongside George Mikan and the Minneapolis Lakers from 1953-57, winning his first title in ’54. He would end his career playing for Boston from 1962-64 where he would win back-to-back championships alongside Bill Russell and Thomas “Satch” Sanders.

Fact No. 4) Boston still holds a MUCH better Finals record than the Lakers

Despite the fact that the Los Angeles Lakers have tied the Cs for most NBA Championships won, Boston still holds the advantage in regard to their respective all-time record in the title game.

Throughout their 70+ years of existence, Boston has been to the Finals on a total of 21 separate occasions while the Lakers have appeared in 32. In regard to their respective records, the Celtics are 17-21 while the Lakers are 17-32. In other words, when making it to the big game, the shamrocks have won 80 percent of the time while L.A. has only managed to win 53 percent of the time.

So, while Lakers fans can sit there and say they are now tied for the most championships in NBA history, looking at the road it took them to get to this point, it’s not nearly as impressive as it has been for the Celtics.