Sunday, June 7, 2015

The Top Ten Boston-Based Team Sport Athletes Of All-Time

There is only one qualification: you have to have played for the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots or Red Sox. There won’t be any boxers, golfers or figure skaters listed here. And while every athlete mentioned below boasts a career’s worth of outstanding individual achievements, the list weighs heavily towards major contributors to championship winning teams.

1.) Bill Russell: Center, Celtics (1956 –1969)















There is no other choice. Not in Boston. Not anywhere. Bill Russell is the most accomplished athlete in the history of North American team sports. The Celtics won 11 NBA Championships during his 13-year career (including 8 straight from 1959 to 1966), and he was the dominant player on every one of those teams. Although he accumulated enough individual awards to overwhelm several trophy cases, such recognition meant little to Russell. NBA Championships are not subjective. They are not won by a vote. So it is both fitting and ironic that the league chose to name their Finals MVP trophy the Bill Russell Award, given to the player who plays best when it matters most. The list of great NBA players is long, but no one on it comes close to matching Bill Russell’s legacy of winning. Russell at #1 sets the tone for this entire list; his place on it is not debatable.

2.) Tom Brady: Quarterback, Patriots (2000-present)

















A year ago, Tom Brady probably would’ve placed third or fourth on this list. But after leading the Patriots to their fourth Super Bowl title, and in the process, continuing to play brilliantly at the most demanding position in all of sports, he finds himself solidly entrenched at #2. Brady’s sustained greatness over 15 NFL seasons is simply astounding. With Tom Brady at quarterback, the Patriots are 160-47 in the regular season and 21-8 in the playoffs, including 6 AFC Championships and those 4 Super Bowl titles. In that time, they’ve also won 12 division titles and secured 9 first-round playoff byes (something that’s not talked about enough when the topic of post-season success comes up – regular season dominance that allows your team to directly insert itself into hosting a Divisional Round playoff game). Gaudy statistics are nice, and Brady has plenty of those, but the main function of a quarterback is to lead his team to victory, and no one has done that more consistently, and over a longer period of time, than Tom Brady.


-A word or two about recent allegations. Let’s get this out of the way first: I am no more impartial on this subject than Roger Goodell. The difference is that one of us has a say in how Tom Brady’s appeal of a 4-game suspension for being less than forthcoming during an investigation run by an NFL-hired lawyer will be handled. Now, there are those, those who have lost to the Patriots in big games, those whose teams have won fewer Super Bowls than the Patriots, and those who just hate to see other teams have prolonged success, who will insist that what Brady is accused of is akin to using PEDs. Their opinions won’t change and neither will mine. As for the team, the Patriots were punished harshly in 2007 for being arrogant and downright foolish in getting caught taping their opponent’s sidelines to the tune of $500k and a first-round draft pick. They deserved it. No question. But a $1 million fine plus first and fourth-round draft choices for more probably then not deflating footballs before a game they eventually won 45-7, does not, in the words of the Globe’s Bob Ryan, “stand up to any kind of intellectual scrutiny.” But at this point, it looks like even another Super Bowl victory won’t change the minds of those who will hate. I guess we’ll just have to get used to it. “It”, being, what it is.-

3) Bobby Orr: Defenseman, Bruins (1966-1976)



















Like Russell and Brady, #3 on this list is in the conversation for Greatest Ever in his sport. Bobby Orr is the most beloved figure in the history of Boston sports, and there’s nothing he couldn’t do with a hockey stick and a pair of skates. So well regarded is Orr that I’ve never read or heard a negative word about him either locally or nationally. Never. When healthy, Orr was the best hockey player anywhere, and with him, the Bruins won 2 Stanley Cups and finished as runner-up once. The list of milestones Orr was first to achieve, as both a defenseman, and a hockey player in general, are too numerous to list. What stands out most, over 35 years after his retirement from the NHL, is how Bobby Orr captivated an entire region, while revolutionizing a position, and a sport, like no other athlete before or since.

 4.) Larry Bird: Forward, Celtics (1979-1992)


























This was not planned, but having Larry Bird rated just below Bobby Orr—and believe me, it was close—is fitting if you know your Boston Sports History. During his speech on the night of his statue dedication, Bird revealed the reason he could always be seen gazing toward the rafters of the old Boston Garden during the national anthem. Turns out he was focusing on Orr’s retired #4 banner as a source of inspiration. “I want people in Boston to think of me when I retire the same way they do Bobby Orr,” he said. Unlike most NBA superstars, Larry Bird could dominate a game without scoring a single point. He could pass like a guard and rebound like a center, and his uncanny ability to anticipate based on the flow of the game helped make up for his average speed and leaping ability. Bird was basketball’s best example that dunks and lots of fancy dribbling are not essential to winning. The Celtics made 5 trips to the Finals and won 3 championships during the Bird Era. By the time he retired, we’d come to think of him simply as Larry Legend, and his #33 now hangs in the TD Garden rafters, right up there with Orr’s #4.

5.) Ted Williams: Outfielder, Red Sox  (1939-1942, 1946-1960)
     David Ortiz: Designated Hitter, Red Sox (2003-present)










I know, ties suck, especially when they’re used to manipulate a top-ten list by stretching it to eleven. That will not be the case here. I just can’t choose between the guy whom many believe to be the greatest hitter who ever lived, and the guy who’s had more big moments than any baseball player during my lifetime.

-A word or two about what-ifs and speculation. This list has nothing to do with what might have been, and that includes time missed in service to our country, nor does it take into account people’s unsubstantiated guesses over who did, or did not, take steroids. Those debates are for others to decide. Here, it’s about what actually took place on the diamond, rink, court, or field.-

So what we have at #5 is a deadlock between possibly the greatest leftfielder of all-time, a man who hit .344 for his career, and the unquestioned greatest designated hitter of all-time (like it or not, DH is a position, just as punter, place-kicker and closer are positions – and don’t forget, Ortiz played first base in 3 World Series and never once embarrassed himself). Based on his legendary aura and historic offensive production, there are those who would place Williams higher, if not #1, but on this list, championships count for a lot, and Williams did not win a ring. Ortiz, on the other hand, has been a central figure on 3 World Series champions for a franchise that had not won any for the better part of a century. All things considered, I’m comfortable placing the two of them side by side in the middle of this list.

7.) John Havlicek: Forward/Guard, Celtics (1962-1978)
















You’d think with all the emphasis on championships that a guy with 8 rings would rank higher. But there is one small technicality that keeps John Havlicek from cracking the top 5: you could argue that Hondo was never the best player on a championship team (the first 6 were won with Bill Russell and I’d rank Havlicek and Dave Cowens as 1A and 1B on the ’74 and ’76 squads). Having said that, ask me next week and John Havlicek might be as high as #4. He was that great. Havlicek may be the most underrated and underappreciated legendary athlete in the history of team sports. In addition to all of those titles, at the time of his retirement following the 1977-78 season, he ranked third on the NBA’s all-time scoring list after averaging 16.1 points and playing all 82 games. And although his name always appears on the list of greatest NBA players, you somehow get the feeling that, just before publication, a proofreader had to shout, “Hey wait a minute, we forgot John Havlicek!...” But not in Boston. Havlicek is right there alongside Bobby Orr, Milt Schmidt and Johnny Pesky in the Esteemed Gentlemen Luxury Box of Boston Sports. It is because of his unassuming modesty that we sometimes need to be reminded of what a ferocious competitor he was and all that he accomplished.

A quick story: Back in the late-80s, a friend of mine was refereeing a game in Charlestown in which Havlicek’s son, Chris, then playing at the University of Virginia, was competing. After the game, Havlicek went out of his way to seek out my friend and tell him how impressed he was by his officiating. My friend was excited and even a little awed. But no one was surprised.

8.) Bob Cousy: Guard, Celtics (1950-1963)



















The starting point guard on the all-time Celtics team was also one of the NBA’s first superstars. Bob Cousy played on 6 Celtics championship teams, and black and white footage of him dribbling through opponents and zipping acrobatic passes to teammates still mesmerizes. Cousy could kill a clock the way Bobby Orr sometimes killed penalties, by playing a one-man game of keep away as members of the opposition desperately flailed about, one step behind. Cousy was a revolutionary athlete, helping to popularize basketball by speeding up a rather predictable game ruled by set shooters and low post giants. While Bill Russell was the unquestioned pillar of the Celtics dynasty of the 1960s, Bob Cousy was its first building block.

9.) Eddie Shore: Defenseman, Bruins (1926-1940)



















Of all the athletes on this list, I am furthest removed from Eddie Shore in terms of having seen him play, or even knowing anyone who saw him play. What I do know is this: Like Cousy in the NBA, Shore was one of the NHL’s earliest superstars. He was a fierce competitor, combining elite skill and toughness in leading the Bruins to their first 2 Stanley Cups. I’ve tried to avoid listing statistics and individual awards as much as possible, but it should be noted that Shore won the Hart Trophy as league MVP 4 times, that’s more than anyone not named Howe or Gretzky. When people from Boston and beyond refer to “That Old Time Hockey,” they’re talking about an era when most every player could skate, check, pass, stick handle, score and, yes, fight, and the name that most often comes to mind is Eddie Shore.

10.) Kevin McHale: Forward, Celtics (1980-1993)















As alluded to earlier, this is a true Top Ten list. I will not follow up with a string of toughest omissions or honorable mentions (there is no honor in simply being mentioned), such stretching of the list only serves as a weak ploy to ease the list-maker’s conscience. And because of all of that, #10 was by far the toughest pick. I believe—with my entire Boston Sports Loving Soul—that the first nine on this list are beyond question (the order could be shuffled some, but I never hesitated with any of them). Here, though, I agonized, and with some input from a dear friend, chose Kevin McHale to close the list.

 McHale is a top-five all-time low post player, both offensively and defensively. He was ridiculously efficient, shooting 55% from the field, and 80% from the free-throw line for his career. Despite his penchant for humor and goofiness, McHale was one of the toughest Celtics ever. His famous open-court near-guillotining of Kurt Rambis in the ’84 Finals provided a much needed momentum swing, propelling the Celtics to Championship #2 of the decade. He even played through the ’87 Finals on a broken foot. McHale was never the #1 option on those 1980s Celtics teams, it was, after all, the Bird Era. But Bird probably doesn’t win those championships without McHale (or Parish, or DJ, or Tiny, or Cedric Maxwell, or Walton, and so on). These are team games, and no one on this list did it alone. Kevin McHale was a unique talent, presenting match-up problems for every opponent he faced. He belongs on this list.

So, that’s it. Yes, I could go on. But that’s ten. Rules are rules, and everybody knows we here in New England neither bend, nor break them...

The Top Ten By The Numbers

Athletes by team: Celtics-5 Bruins-2 Red Sox-2 Patriots-1

Championship Teams Represented: 27 (of 35) Celtics-16 (17) Bruins-4 (6) Patriots-4 (4) Red Sox-3 (8)

Total Championship Rings: 42 (Russell-11 Havlicek-8 Cousy-6 Brady-4 Bird-3 McHale-3 Ortiz-3 Orr-2 Shore-2)

Hall Of Famers: 8 (NBA-Russell, Cousy, Havlicek, Bird, McHale. NHL-Shore, Orr. MLB-Williams. Brady is a shoe-in. Ortiz...we'll see)

Retired Uniform Numbers: 8 (Celtics-Russel 6, Cousy 14, Havlicek 17, Bird 33, McHale 32. Bruins-Orr 4, Shore 2. Red Sox-Williams 9. After they retire, Brady's 12 and Ortiz's 34 will never be worn again.

Sets Of Teammates: 4  Cousy-Russell, Cousy-Russell-Havlicek, Russell-Havlicek, Bird-McHale