Celtics-Lakers: Remembering the Rivalry from a Different Perspective

Since last Friday night, when the Celtics closed out their series with the Pistons setting up the Finals match-up with the Lakers, so much has been said and written about the Boston-L.A. rivalry.  Many connections have been made between the two historic franchises—Wilt and Russell, Bird and Magic, and now K.G, Kobe, and Pierce.

I have been thinking about two other names that are connected in Celtics-Lakers history—Eddie Jones and Eric Montross.

In 1994, both the Celtics and the Lakers were linked.  This time, not in the finals, but in the NBA Draft Lottery.  In 1994, Boston missed the playoffs for the first time since 1979, the year before Larry.  For the Lakers, it was their first time not making the playoffs since 1976.

The 1994 Lakers were memorable because that was the season Magic tried his hand at coaching—which worked about as well as The Magic Hour.  The Lakers would finish the season 33-49, nine games out of the playoffs.

For the Celtics, Bird had retired following the 1992 season.  Boston made the playoffs in 1993, losing to the Charlotte Hornets in the first round.   That series though not only marked the final games in Kevin McHale’s career, as he retired following the season, but also in Reggie Lewis' career, as his life came to an end far too soon that summer.    

Not surprisingly, the Celtics struggled in 1994, finishing 32-50, one-game worse than the Lakers.  After the lottery, the Celtics received the ninth pick, the Lakers the tenth.

Come draft day, Boston went with the big man, choosing Montross who had just finished his career at North Carolina.  The Lakers took Jones out of Temple. 

For years, as I watched the Celtics struggle and the Lakers win three championships, I thought of this moment. 

There was a time when you couldn't say Celtics without saying the Lakers.  The teams dominated the 1980s, combining to win eight of the nine NBA championships between 1980 and 1988.  Then the teams remained intertwined when each fell on hard times following the retirments of Bird and Magic. 

Now here they were again, two legendary NBA franchises together at what both thought had to be the bottom—not making the playoffs.

The Lakers, however, got themselves right up off the mat, made the correct draft pick, made wise decisions going forward and never looked back.  

The Celtics, however, would find out what the bottom really was.  

Initially, it seemed as if both teams had righted the ship.  Each made the playoffs in 1995—Boston, the eighth seed, lost in the opening round to Shaq, Penny Hardaway, and the Orlando Magic in the final games ever played at the Boston Garden.  The Lakers, the fifth seed, defeated Seattle in the first round before falling to San Antonio in the second round.

Jones spent five years in L.A., and the Lakers made the postseason each year.  In 1999, he was traded to Charlotte for Glen Rice and others, primarily to free up playing time for another young Lakers' guard—Kobe Bryant.

In the aftermath of the trade, Laker fans would often chant “Eddie Eddie” at home games, as they missed the since-traded Jones.  The fans would get over it, however, as the 1999-2000 Lakers with Kobe, Rice, a center named Shaq, and Phil Jackson as coach, brought the Lakers all the way back to the top of the NBA—capturing the NBA title, L.A.’s first since 1988.  

The Lakers added two more titles.  While Eddie Jones didn’t actually win a ring with the Lakers, the selection of Jones helped turn around the franchise and he played a major role in the development of Kobe Bryant—and in laying the foundation for what turned into a championship run.

Jones made three all-star teams, has played in nearly 1000 games, and has made the playoffs twelve times. For his career, Jones has averaged 14.8 points per game, 4.0 rebounds, and three assists.

Things did not go as well in Boston.  After 1995, Montross would never return to the playoffs with the Celtics, and Boston as a team would not make it back until 2002.  Montross wound up playing only two years in Boston before being traded following the 1996 season to Dallas.  While I am not positive, I can almost guarantee that Celtic fans did not ever chant “Eric, Eric” at home games in 1997.

Montross retired in 2002, with career averages of 4.5 points and 4.6 rebounds.  This past season, Eddie Jones averaged 3.7 points per game for the Mavericks—at age 36.  

I am not blaming the Celtics struggles from 1995-2007 on Eric Montross, but just pointing to the 1994 draft as a symbol.  The Celtics made the wrong pick and in the years to come would bring in Rick Pitino, trade for Vin Baker and waste key draft picks on the likes of Kedrick Brown, Jerome Moiso, and Joe Forte.

The Lakers made the right pick, and in the years to come made a draft day trade of Vlade Divac for Kobe which created the cap space to sign Shaq and then hired Phil Jackson.

It has been 21 years since there was a Celtics-Lakers finals, after the teams met for the championship three times in a four-year span.  While these past few days have been a time to think back to all the memorable games and all-time greats from both teams, I still find myself thinking back to June 29, 1994—when the fates of the Celtics and the Lakers were once again connected, and how their paths diverged following the 1994 draft.  

And maybe now, that the Celtics are back in the NBA finals against the Lakers, I can finally stop thinking to myself, “I can’t believe they took Eric Montross over Eddie Jones.”