On ESPN Classic all week they've been showing old Celtics/Lakers Finals from the 80's on a loop, so I'm a pig in shit. Boy, seems like every year it was Celtics/Lakers for the Finals, right? Me and Brothatime! lugging the tv into our room on a Sunday afternoon. I'm watching Game 2 of the 1984 series, and after 75 seconds I'm out of breath. There are 32 future Hall of Famers on the floor, there's been 192 shots since I started watching and on every possession there seems to be a play from the lost civilization of basketball's dark ages: the court-length outlet pass. Awesome.
But I always wondered something watching all these games from the Gahhhhhhden. Why were the blocks on the free throw lane red? Wtf? A beautiful, iconic court - you had the parquet of course, then green lanes and white lines. Who's the wizard that said "fuck it, let's do the blocks red?" Wtf? You could guess tribute to Auerbach, but I doubt the Celtics were that sentimental about a coach who would live another 22 years. Anyways. Always wondered that.
Sidebar: 16 years ago Sistatime! and I rolled up in the Garden train station on a visit to see the aunts. I remember standing in a hallway or something and thinking "hey, let me poke my head through this door for no reason at all" and I found myself looking right into the fucking Garden. Unreal. Then I wondered "why are they setting up all those tables on the court? Hmm. Oh well."
An hour later I turned on the tv at Grandmatime!'s house and there was Bird, sitting at a table in the middle of the Garden announcing his retirement. I missed seeing the Basketball Jesus by minutes!!!! :)
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