Celtics return to glory with championship effort

by Mark Kriegel

BOSTON - Spend too much time in Los Angeles and you forget what a real crowd sounds like, those deafening decibels, that beery din.

The Boston Celtics' 17th championship was accorded the familiar rituals: the spray of confetti followed by a televised trophy presentation. Still, however loud it remained inside the TD Banknorth Garden, by then the festivities had already begun to take on an anti-climactic air.

As celebrations go, this one was particularly exhausting, having begun midway through the fourth quarter. Finally, with 4:01 remaining and the Celtics up by a mere 35, Doc Rivers removed his triumvirate of stars known as the Big Three.

"They came in as a group," Rivers said. "I thought we should take them out as a group."

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