The Boston Bandwagon
I was just thinking about the Celitcs and how many people jumped on the bandwagon last year when they finally were good again. Unfortunately, I happen to (sort of) be one of these people. I used to loathe the NBA. Really. I had no respect for it, I didn’t even consider it real basketball; I never real gave it a chance. Now don’t misunderstand, I am NOT a typical bandwagoner. I know the sport of basketball—I’ve played my entire life. I love watching high school and college basketball, but not the pro’s. I considered the pro’s a bunch of…punks, for lack of a better word. But when I began watching the Celtics last season, I saw a team I was able to respect, that actually played basketball. And now I’m hooked. I don’t really consider myself on the bandwagon because yeah I just started liking the Celtics when they were getting good, but they have made me a fan for life. For better or for worse, I am now a Boston Celtics fan.
BUT. Even though I am a new fan myself, some of these new fans I just cannot respect. I know the game of basketball, I’ve lived it! And I’m was born and raised in Worcester, MA and now go to school in Boston. Thus, I feel I have the right to make fun of the girls who are SUCH big fans of the Red Sox/Celtics/Patriots when they’re doing well but really have no idea about what’s happening in the sport at all.
This is something that really upsets me. The worst part: the pink shirts. Everytime I see a pink Red Sox shirt I can practically see Ted Williams rolling around in his grave. Or is it one of those tanks where his body is being preserved? I can’t remember what side won that debate…but either way, I can’t imagine him or other Sox greats approving of The Pink Shirt.
Now I don’t think I’ve seen a pink Celtics shirt yet, but I’m sure they’ll come out with them soon enough. As much as I hate the Pink Shirt’s of Boston, I have some faith deep down that they’ll actually figure out the rules of the sport one day and become real fans.
Back to the Celtics…
I hace full respect for this organization. They have blown up over the past year and a half or so and they deserve to be back in the limelight. The Celtics play with a dignity I used to think did not exist in professional basketball. They play with respect, as a team, and they play well.
I think they may have a caught a little bit of whatever the Red Sox have. The Red Sox are everything for people from Massachusetts. But the great thing about the Red Sox is that their popularity is nation-wide. They are a universally respect team (well maybe the Yankees don’t respect us…), even when they aren’t having a great season. I grew up on the Red Sox. My father grew up on the Red Sox. His father grew up on the Red Sox. It is a part of my blood that I can’t ignore even if I wanted to. But trust me—I don’t want to. The Red Sox are good sports; they play as a team, they play with respect, and they aren’t afraid to demand the respect they deserve.
Now the Celtics have taken on the Red Sox attitude and are gaining more fans by the second. They are becoming what the Red Sox are to Massachusetts—everything. A family. Sure sometimes you get frustrated and ignore them for a few days, weeks, maybe even months, but you always come back to them. They are always going to be there for you, and they never let you down, even when they aren’t so great, because you know that they’re just trying to make you happy.
The relationship Boston teams have with their fans is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The Red Sox have brought tears to my eyes on multiple occassions. The Celtics have once or twice already, too. Here in Massachusetts we take pride in our state and everything within it, especially our athletics. We live and die Sox and C’s.
My most touching moment with the Red Sox was when they finally won the World Series in 2004. My Grandfather, a Red Sox fan from birth, died about a month before they won it. The worst part? He was born in 1919—just after the Sox had one their last series. My grandfather, one of the best men I’ve ever known, second only to my father, was one of the biggest Red Sox fans I have ever met. And he never saw them win the series. this absolutely breaks my heart. I think of this from time to time, whenever the 2004 Series is brought up, and it always brings tears to my eyes.
Experiences like this are the direct opposition to the bandwagon.
