BOSTON (AP) — The Celtics entered the season vowing to turn their recent playoff disappointment into joy.
Eight months later, the team celebrated the franchise's 18th championship in what has become a signature Boston celebration. On Friday, a large crowd took part in a duck boat parade to mark the 13th championship this century by one of the city's franchises in one of America's big four sports leagues.
The Celtics, Patriots, Red Sox and Bruins have all commemorated championships by boarding Duck Boats, amphibious vehicles that carry tourists.
In Boston, launching boats and taking a leisurely cruise through the city streets has become synonymous with a sense of sports supremacy, and Friday's parade was the latest element of the salute to the Celtics since they retired in 2009. They beat the Dallas Mavericks in five games. in the NBA Finals on Monday night.
The procession, which lasted about 90 minutes, began at TD Garden, turned onto Causeway Street in front of the arena, walked past City Hall, through Boston Common, down Boylston Street and ended at the Hynes Convention Center.
Along the way, there were plenty of moments when the city honored the franchise that had just broken the league's all-time record for wins with the rival Los Angeles Lakers. Fans celebrated by hanging from lampposts, holding handmade signs and standing in subway entrances.
“I can't believe it. It still doesn't seem real, but I'm just trying to live in the moment,” All-Star Jayson Tatum said at the pre-parade rally at the Garden.
Celtics owner Wyck Grousbeck gave fans an early treat about 90 minutes before the trades were due to begin.
He was accompanied by his wife, Emilia Fazzalari, and their daughter as they made their way into the arena carrying the Larry O'Brien Trophy and the newly created 2024 championship banner.
Traffic jams and barricades prevented them from getting through, so they walked about half a mile down Causeway Street, carrying trophies and banners and weaving their way through throngs of fans.
Inside the Garden, the rally was attended by players and their families, members of the Celtics organization, arena staff, season-ticket holders and guests including Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu.
The team celebrated Monday night in the locker room, spraying champagne and taking photos with the trophy, before flying to Miami for a private party.
When the Celtics returned to action on Wednesday, coach Joe Mazzulla expanded the party once again to include a crowd, allowing fans to get an up-close look at and possibly touch the trophy as Mazzulla carried it around Boston's famed North End.
“I drove all the way from Ohio (Wednesday) to see the parade,” Celtics fan Jason Hawkins said. He told Boston's ABC affiliate WCVB-TV.“I touched the trophy. I got it on video.”
The gold basketball was unveiled Friday, with players surrounded by Celtics officials and their families waving and interacting with fans.
This season, the Celtics have ended every huddle with the words, “Together.”
Jaylen Brown said Friday that the team's theme this year is unity.
“Whatever it took to win, I was going to do it,” Brown said.
The day was both a celebration of the team-first approach Mazzulla has implemented this season, and a culmination of the missions that stars Brown and Tatum began after being drafted No. 3 overall (Brown in 2016, Tatum a year later).
The two went to four conference finals and one NBA Finals (lost to the Golden State Warriors in 2022) together, eventually reaching the top of the league. Brown was named Finals MVP, but he said it belonged to his “partner in crime.”
While the city has had to wait nearly two decades for this celebration, the Celtics are firmly positioned to become the first team since the Warriors in 2018 to win back-to-back NBA championships.
All five starters — Tatum, Brown, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White and Kristaps Porzingis — are under contract for next season, and the Celtics are expected to sign Tatum and White to similar contract extensions this summer, following the long-term extensions they signed with Brown, Holiday and Porzingis.
Reserve player Luke Kornet led fans in a countdown from 1 to 18 at the end of the parade route, ensuring fans remembered the Celtics' championship history.
Their message to the city is clear: Keep gassing the duck boats.
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