BOSTON — The decibel level from the voices did not seem to fit the number of bodies left in the arena, yet with their team trailing by double digits late in Thursday's game, the few Celtics fans still in attendance loudly made their support known.
The "Let's go Celtics!" chants that emanated from the stands and echoed through the 17 banners hanging from the rafters may not soon be forgotten by the current members of the team.
Here is what a few of them had to say about it.
Kevin Garnett: "I just want to say to all the fans, I knew it was going to be a crazy day. It took me three hours to get to the Garden [Thursday]. That's unusual. I want to say to all the fans, thank you, guys. I've never in my life experienced anything like this, in any sport. I'm just truly blessed to be a Celtic and be a part of the city of Boston. That's what's up to all the New Englanders around here. It's [expletive] crazy."
Paul Pierce: "We have the best fans in the world. Down 20, at home, in the playoffs, and they cheer us off the court. That's just awesome. That's why we have the best fans in the world."
Rajon Rondo: "It was unbelievable. We've always said this, but that just shows we have the best fans in sports, not just basketball. A lot of them stayed, and the chant was unbelievable. It was a crazy feeling when you're down 20."
Ray Allen: "I said to Kevin, I know I'm biased, but they're the best fans I've ever played in front of or ever seen in my life. They understand the situation that is before us, and that was basically them sending us off, letting us know, 'Hey, this is still well and alive. We need you guys to go down there and get a win for us.' We all felt it on the bench. It seemed like that three minutes lasted forever. It was special. I'll talk about that forever, just knowing we're down 20 and these people are still standing up, cheering us on, because they know we just have to win one game."
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