Afternoon Delight: 15 years of Celtic Fandom

In 1996, I came across what would eventually become my first love and passion, the Boston Celtics. Though the team was not very good---actually, they were historically atrocious going only 15-67---I watched nearly every second of every game as if I was apart of the team. I was 8 years old and had no idea who Bird, Mchale, Cousy, or Bill Russell were. I knew nothing about the historic tradition of the Green and their then 16 championship banners. Red was a still a color and not the genius patriarch that created the greatest franchise in the NBA. All I knew was the group of rag tag players that were assembled at the helm of one very upset coach, ML Carr. I watched Dana Barros, Rick Fox, David Wesley, Todd Day and company try to fight and scrap for every win despite not being as athletic or cohesive as other teams. However in my naive state, I thought that the Celtics could beat anyone and should be the favorites every night. I cherished small moral victories (like not losing by double digits) and knew that the team would eventually become a winner. Twelve long years later on June 17, 2008, I was lucky enough to witness this bittersweet feat live at the garden.