CelticsStrong
Celtics Basketball => Celtics History => Topic started by: Eja117 on June 29, 2016, 11:46:22 PM
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The cynic in me says "None! This is like if you were a top free agent quarterback and you met with the Browns and they introduced you to Otto Graham, or at absolute best the Jets introduced you to Namath. Darn kids. They don't know their history. Get off my lawn."
The optimist in me remembers KG crying in his interview with Russell. The optimist in me says "look at all those banners." The optimist in me says "The MVP trophy is named after him and he's in every single top 5 player discussion."
It seems to me like on some level Russell definitely has some sort of affect. I think it may be partly because of his major black athlete identity, a little like Muhammed Ali. Kind of an anti-Wilt Chamberlain with a TON of rings.
It may not be exactly like meeting your own boyhood idol, but it's kinda like meeting your dad's and that's fun.
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Didn't Russell crush the city back in the day. He always tells things as they are. So if he speaks well of this team players should really know he means it give the man's history.
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I think Russell is high profile enough that NBA players will always know who he is and revere him. As for his importance to recruiting: it'll matter to some guys. Guys like LeBron, who are very conscious of their places in history. Maybe KD will care, and maybe not, but I hope we can get Russ to chat with KD over the weekend.
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Good points. I didn't think of these things. Maybe I underrated today's players on this
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Good points. I didn't think of these things. Maybe I underrated today's players on this
I think you might be; a lot of these guys really understand and appreciate the history of the game. For example, I saw a video of Brandon Ingram shortly before the draft, and he said he models his game after George Gervin.
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One of my few counterpoints would be that there don't seem to be tons of guys flocking to play for Jordan in Charlotte. Or Bird in Indiana.
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Bill Russell has a huge impact on free agents decision due to his Finals MVP trophy.
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One of my few counterpoints would be that there don't seem to be tons of guys flocking to play for Jordan in Charlotte. Or Bird in Indiana.
I think this is apples and oranges. First off, Bird and Jordan did not play for their respective teams. Bird cannot tell a player how amazing it is to play in Indiana (even though he briefly coached there) or how the fans treat their players because he never experienced it. Jordan cannot sell someone on how awesome it was to win 6 rings in Charlotte because he didn't. To players, Bird is just another GM, and Jordan is just another guy to pay their contract.
On the other hand, Russell is not a front-office stiff with a dog in the fight. He is describing something that he experienced first-hand: the cultural implications of thriving as a professional athlete in the Boston area. That in itself is unique from a Bird or Jordan. At this point, Durant is probably not starstruck talking to past/present NBA stars: he is one. He has probably talked to Bill Russell before. However, Russell's opinion could be viewed as a valuable because he has knowledge about playing, and having unprecedented success, in Boston. In addition, Russell could tell KD how the city/organization has treated him through his retirement, for example how he is still revered, recognized, and celebrated by common fans and the Celtics organization. As a man that is known to have been (be?) pretty straightforward in his interviews, anything that he tells Durant would supposedly be true, and it would also be out of his love for Boston, as he is not from the area and has no financial stake in the matter.
Russell would be part of a multi-pronged attack. Stevens will deal with the basketball details, telling Durant how he would fit into the offense and how others would complement him. Ainge could lay out (pretty straightforward, with the C's cap space) methods to acquire players that Durant wants to play with. Wyc and Pags could point to precedents of being all-in financially to fielding the best team possible. IT and others could tell Durant what it's like to play in the Garden 41 games a year. And Russell and other legends could detail to Durant just what it's like to succeed in Boston, how the city reveres you and how the organization takes care of you for the rest of your life.
Durant's friends and family will be there in the meeting with him. The basketball and financial stuff would be for him. The emotional appeal and the certainty that their brother/son/cousin/friend would be welcomed and taken care of for the rest of his days would be for everyone else in Durant's corner.
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Bill Russell has a huge impact on free agents decision due to his Finals MVP trophy.
Bill be like: "so Kevin, I'll be shaking your hand in June right? With you wearing green?"
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He's ancient and not on the roster so I'd say he has very little effect.
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KD seem like the type that respect old school players a lot. I may be wrong but he seems to be that type of guy. Having (the greatest) Bill Russel sit across from him is a definite plus. DWight on the other hand seem like a dolt whether Bill is sitting across from him or not.
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Bill Russell is equal to Jim Brown as far legend and cultural status. Most players would greatly give them the respect that they deserve.
I'm not sure if jr smith would.
As far as free agency, im not sure it helps unless he is present.
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Bill Russell is equal to Jim Brown as far legend and cultural status. Most players would greatly give them the respect that they deserve.
I'm not sure if jr smith would.
As far as free agency, im not sure it helps unless he is present.
That would kind of be awesome if he was in the room when KD gets the offer. And he can be like "You are so blessed." Bill should look him in the eye. Maybe Bill will see something we don't see.
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KD listed Bill Russell as one of his all time players he'd love to play with in their prime.
he is also a Larry Bird fan..
"Larry Bird is a guy I like watching," Durant said with a smile. "I watch film on him all the time. I like his approach to the game when he was playing. When I first started playing the game, my Godfather Taras Brown – who taught me how to play – he always was a Larry Bird guy, always used to look up his stats. Brown, nicknamed "Stink" was a trainer at a local gym, Seat Pleasant Recreation Center, just outside of Washington, D.C. where Durant grew up and was his coach there.
"So of course as I got older and started to watch NBATV, Legends games, and of course you hear the stories about the rivalries with him and the Lakers and him and Magic, so I like his competitiveness, how low-maintenance he was, how he just went out there and did his job. He played hard. He played for the love of the game, and that's what I've got."
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/thunder/2012/12/05/kevin-durant-game-is-evolving-and-so-is-his-marketability/1748853/
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None.
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leagacy-stay in okc get a street and statue will never match the banners and legends of the greatest francise-next year westbrook is gone to LA -
go to san francisco and join curry,thompson,green and be part of the greatest team ever assembled or come to boston and build that team and become A legend
-russell cuts a truly great figure even today
-no street named after him but a MVP trophy and a imposing statue and a legacy and all those banners in the mecca of pro sports--russell can certainly talk about being a legacy and steer durant away from curry and gang and how to seperate from a pre made group
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Tell that to Kevin Garnett.
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Tell that to Kevin Garnett.
Garnett wasn't a free agent. And he didn't accept the trade because of Russell.
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Little to none.
None of these guys were alive when Russell played. Heck, I'm guessing some of their parents weren't alive when Russell played. So I think the aura about him, unfortunately, isn't as ingrained in their heads as someone who played more recently is. They know he's a legend but they don't really have a connect with him since he played such a long time ago.