celtics odds
The Boston Celtics are a professional basketball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, playing in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Their 16 NBA Championships are the most for any NBA franchise, while the 1959-to-1966 domination of the NBA Championship, with eight straight titles, is the longest consecutive championship winning streak of any North American professional sports team to date.
The Celtics were formed in 1946 as a team in the Basketball Association of America, and became part of the National Basketball Association after the merger of the BAA and the National Basketball League to form the NBA in the fall of 1949.[1] In 1950, the Celtics became the first franchise to draft an African American player, signing Chuck Cooper.[2]
The Celtics had struggled during their early years, but the hiring of Coach Red Auerbach would change their fortunes. One of the first major players to join the Celtics was Bob Cousy, whom Auerbach initially refused to draft.[3] Cousy eventually became the property of the Chicago Stags.[4] When that franchise went bankrupt, Cousy was acquired by the Celtics in a dispersal draft.[5] He would become a huge part of the Celtics' success and eventually became good friends with his new coach. Under Auerbach the Celtics improved dramatically, becoming a consistent threat to win in the NBA's Eastern Division in each of his first six seasons, although they fell short each time.
After the 1955-56 season, Auerbach made a stunning trade. He sent perennial All-Star and future Hall of Famer Ed Macauley to the St. Louis Hawks along with the draft rights to Cliff Hagan in exchange for the Hawks' first round draft pick, the second overall.[6] After negotiating with the Rochester Royals, Auerbach used the pick to select University of San Francisco center Bill Russell.[7] Auerbach also acquired Holy Cross standout, and 1957 NBA Rookie of the Year, Tommy Heinsohn.[8] Russell and Heinsohn worked extraordinarily well with Cousy, and they were the players around whom Auerbach would build the Celtics for more than a decade. Russell, who might well have beaten Heinsohn for the '57 Rookie of the Year Award, had he not been ineligible due to joining the NBA mid-season in order to play for the US Olympic team (winning the gold), had an immediate impact during 1957Russell joined the Celtics in December of 1956[8] and went on to play most every game during which the Celtics advanced to the NBA Finals and defeated the St. Louis Hawks in seven games, giving the Celtics the first of their record 16 NBA Championships.[9] In 1958, the Celtics again advanced to the NBA Finals, this time losing to the Hawks in 6 games.[10] However, with the acquisition of K.C. Jones that year, the Celtics began a dynasty that would last for more than a decade.[11] In 1959, with Cousy at point guard, Russell at center and Heinsohn up front, the Celtics won the NBA Championship after sweeping the Minneapolis Lakers.[12] Still coached by Auerbach, the Celtics won seven more consecutive championships, bringing their streak to eight in a row.[13] During that timespan, the Celtics met the Lakers in the Finals six times, starting an intense and often bitter rivalry. The Celtics would eventually meet the Lakers a total of 10 times in the NBA Finals. In 1964, Auerbach made the Celtics the first team to have an all African American starting lineup.[14]
After the 1966 championship, Auerbach retired as coach and Russell took over as player-coach.[15] With his appointment, Russell also became the first African American coach in the NBA.[16] Auerbach would remain the General Manager, a position he would hold well into the 1980s. However, that year the Celtics' string of NBA titles was broken as they lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference Finals. The aging team managed two more championships in 1968 and 1969, defeating the Lakers each time in the NBA Finals.[17] Russell retired after the 1969 season, effectively ending a dominant Celtics dynasty that had garnered 11 NBA titles in 13 seasons.[18] The streak of 8 consecutive NBA championships is the longest streak of consecutive championships in U.S. professional sports history.[19] Other important players during this era included Sam Jones, John Havlicek, Frank Ramsey, and Satch Sanders.
The 1970 season was a rebuilding year, as the Celtics had their first losing record since the 1949-50 season, the year prior to Auerbach's arrival.[20] However, with the acquisition of Dave Cowens, Paul Silas, and Jo Jo White, the Celtics soon became dominant again.[21] After losing in the Eastern Conference Finals in 1972, the Celtics regrouped and came out determined in 1973 and posted an excellent 68-14 regular season record. But the season ended in disappointment, as they were upset in 7 games by the New York Knicks in the Conference Finals and became the team with the best record ever to have failed to make the Finals.[22] The Celtics rebounded the next year, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Finals in 1974 for their 12th NBA Championship.[23] The teams split the first four games, and after the Celtics won Game 5 in Milwaukee they headed back to Boston leading three games to two, with a chance to claim the title on their home court. But the Bucks won Game 6 when Abdul-Jabbar nestled in a hook shot with three seconds left in the game's second overtime, and the series returned to Milwaukee. Cowens was the hero in Game 7, scoring 28 points as the Celtics brought the title back to Boston for the first time in five years. In 1976 the team won yet another championship, defeating the Phoenix Suns in 6 games. The 1976 NBA Finals featured one of the greatest games in the history of the NBA. With the series tied at two games apiece, the Suns trailed early in the Boston Garden, but came back to force overtime. In double overtime, a Gar Heard turn-around jumper at the top of the key sent the game to an unprecedented third overtime, at which point the Celtics prevailed.[24] Tommy Heinsohn coached the team for those two championships. After the 1976 championship and a playoff appearance in 1977, Boston went into another phase of rebuilding.
In the 1977 NBA Draft, the Celtics drafted a young forward from the UNC Charlotte named Cedric Maxwell.[25] Maxwell did not contribute much in his rookie season, but he showed promise. Auerbach's job became even tougher following a horrible 1977-78 in which they went 32-50 as John Havlicek, the Celtics All-Time leading scorer, retired after 16 seasons
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The official website of the Boston Celtics. ... Our overall draft lottery odds look like this: Celtics' Chances Of Receiving Each Possible pick
Bet on the Boston Celtics with the best basketball odds available. ... NBA Betting - Boston Celtics - NBA Odds, Lines & betting
The official website of the Boston Celtics. ... Want to know the odds of the Celtics landing each pick? ... Possible Pick. Celtics' Odds Of Receiving. Each
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