Seventeen championship banners 
do not engender the same respect they used to.
Recently departed Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who already disappointed Boston fans this offseason by leaving to coach the Los Angeles Clippers, twisted the knife a bit in an interview from his new home in California. While acknowledging that his nine seasons in Boston were the best in his basketball life, Rivers made a surprising offhand assessment of his new employer’s co-tenant at Staples Center.
“The risk is all mine,” Rivers told Yahoo! Sports. “To go to an organization that hasn’t won but [two] playoff series in their entire history, in a town where the other team is the best franchise in sports history, that’s a risk.”
Ouch. Yes, Rivers was talking about the Lakers, with their 16 NBA championships, being the best franchise in sports history over the Celtics, with their 17 titles. The Celtics and Lakers have met 12 times in the NBA Finals, for what it’s worth, with the Celtics winning nine of those series.
Somewhere, Bill Russell is letting out an amused cackle at Rivers’ opinion.
