Cory Hedgepeth
TheShiver’s Cory Hedgepeth is picking the Lakers to win it all. That’s no surprise, I mean, he is the resident LA socialite with misguided Lakers love. But he’s also talking about Boston rival Pierce’s greatness, and about waiting in the rain for the Christmas day showdown, we aren’t really sure which is more surprising. LA is known to become soft in rain.
The Magic Johnson tribute statue in front of Staples Center is memorizing to any and all NBA fans. Even in the cold rain of this year’s Christmas day in Los Angeles, the statue fights the elements, as do the great many onlookers that slow in passing, as they make their way to the entrance for the hottest ticket in the NBA this year: Lakers versus Celtics.
It’s funny how decades of time, and decades of events, can degrade a mythological monster of its luster. A nine-year-old passing the statue with a slow gaze likely couldn’t tell you that two years ago, the mighty Lakers were eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs, leaving Kobe Bryant in yet another onslaught of media second guessing. And certainly, they are unlikely to realize that up until one year ago, the prior ten years of the Celtics organization made one charming appearance in the NBA Playoffs.
The Lakers recent decade of successes was consistent with an organization that believed in winning. And while such successes, namely three NBA titles and four appearances, maintained the purity of their legacy, their opponents didn’t. The Indiana Pacers, The New Jersey Nets, and The Philadelphia 76ers are all great franchises, with history and big time stars, but they lack that brutal rivalry that tends to create the “good versus evil” effect The Lakers versus The Celtics have historically been responsible for.
Then there is former Jayhawk, Paul Pierce, that’s legacy has been one of fleeting greatness. A strong forward with a body hosting the kind of athleticism that can beat you from any range, yet a wall of accolades hosting little more than being a first round draft pick, elimination from the ’96,’ 97 and ’98 NCAA tournaments, and playing the role of the marquee name of a storied organization that, up until last year, was on life support. Many Jayhawk fans remember those three aforementioned tournaments with disgrace and shame: The Jayhawks, a storied organization, lending Syracuse, Arizona and Rhode Island 40 minutes to create a plum of Cinderella glory. Pierce was a part of that.
But on Christmas day, just past ten years since those Jayhawk days and his 1st round draft selection, he lent that same glory to some of the greatest iconic players in NBA history; and I saw it first hand.
The NBA hasn’t really been the same since Jordan left. Shaq and Kobe certainly helped inspire fans, but both were players that were more popular for locality then they were for marketability. Kobe has the athletic and mental tools, that’s difficult to argue against, but his marketability until recently, was lack-luster at best. Shaq’s a big man, and lets keep things raw here, big men just aren’t that marketable. That’s not to say that the NBA was hurting, however, when Shaq left Kobe behind with a team of scrubs, and Boston was still a .400 percent winner, the marketability that had been salvaged since Jordan’s retirement had all but blown away with the Santa Ana winds blustering in from the high deserts that sit just west of Los Angeles. And lets not forget about the strike.
All these items mattered little on this cold and rainy day. It mattered little, because the Lakers and Celtics rivalry was back in full swing, and once again, the NBA is reeling from it. Players such as Bird, Magic, and Worthy are once again, basking in the glory of years past. They are discussing the days of new. And the fans are simply eating it up, standing in the cold and wind, the rain, the lines to enter Staples Center. They are chanting, masquerading in Irish costumes and purple and gold wigs. They are filling the seats faster, instead of mingling in cocktail lounges. Even Denzel Washington found his seat before tip off on this day.
The key contributors of the day are fresh and talented blood. Of course, failing to mention Kobe, the single greatest player in the current NBA, would be a fallacy. And leaving Garnett and his alluring spirit and talent that seemed to turn an organization around faster than any organization in NBA history would be purely criminal. But neither capture the essence of the rivalry, an essence that has turned the NBA back into a full throttle-marketing machine, more so than former Jayhawk, Paul Pierce.
Kobe has legacy. And talent. And clutch. And he is a warrior that will cut your throat in the 4th quarter of the game. But, with the exception of a couple of random years, he has always been blessed with having the necessary tools (players) to win; just like his predecessor Jordan. And Garnett, well, he jumped ship to find his success, which although maintains the dynamic of the new NBA, contradicts the old one.
Then there is Pierce. A New England hero that has been tested by defeat, over and over, even when the drums beat his name as one of the best players in the NBA. In the stands on Christmas day, it was Pierce that was the abominable iconic enemy that dared to make presence in Los Angeles. It was Pierce, not Garnett, and not Kobe, that fans lined the rafters to see and scream against. It was only 6 months ago that Pierce was carried off the Garden floor with injury and taken back on in a wheel chair, where Boston billed him as a hero; Lakers fans felt different, and they remembered. And they watched his every move, hoping for airballs, screaming for defensive miscues and erupting when Pierce had to play the role of school teacher and separate a feuding Ray Allen and Raja Rondo.
The NBA is back. That statue of Magic, weathering the rare cold and rain that comes off the Pacific in the winters, had more luster. And Pierce is the central figure, the villanized figure, the hero, the clutch shooter, the team leader, which holds a great responsibility.
I predicted that this year’s Finals would be a rematch; my prediction which is an orgasmic marketing dream for the NBA. And I also predicted that the Christmas day winner, which turned out to be The Lakers, would be the Finals winner. But that really only adds to the allure. Because two years ago, we really weren’t talking about a regular season game having such significance. And having watched Pierce play, even though he wasn’t legendary on this particular day, he did etch his name in stone as the NBA icon for a rivalry risen from the dead; for his NBA legacy will be so immaculate, that those tournament loses and those 10 losing NBA seasons will just look like they were part of the journey en route to historical greatness.
Cory Hedgepeth is a former Kansas Jayhawk student who currently resides in Huntington Beach, California. He can be reached at coryhedgepeth@gmail.com
