First things first. I am not here to whine or swear that God is against the Boston Celtics. I know Tim Duncan is not and never was a Celtic. Even if there was a 25% chance back in the summer of 1997 that we would get him, there was a 75% chance that we wouldn't. We didn't. I love the Celtics as they are now. As painful as a season as we just endured, I love them all the same. But, watching Duncan go up for ring number four while four current Celtics not named Scalabrine have been in the league for 4 years or more, it's hard not to think of what could have been.
One of the best and most underrated qualities of Duncan is his ability to hold a team together. The reason the Spurs are so fearsome is that its coach and core players seem like such a tight bunch. There are rarely (if ever) in any trade rumors or is there any negative gossip surrounding Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and their beloved Coach Popovich - they compliment each other on the court and off. I couldn't envision any of them playing/coaching anywhere without each other. Part of that reason is that Parker, Ginobili, and Popovich know that Duncan is a golden asset to have. Duncan is a dominant winner, a low-key low-post guy who hasn't bought into the media hype machine, never fueds with teammates, just happens to win games with an old-fashioned if not boring style. Parker, Manu, and Pop couldn't be in a better situation and they know it - they aren't going anywhere.
Other recent champions have not had the luxury of such serene dominance. The 2004-05 Detroit Pistons, although very likable, had a coach in Larry Brown constantly rumored to be on the move. Since then he up and left, along with Ben Wallace, Okur, and possibly this summer, Chauncey Billups (don't even get me started). Shaq and Kobe complained publicly about each other on a daily basis, and it soon turned out that Los Angeles wasn't big enough for both of them. The Spurs, however, have kept their heart intact.
That is one of the most painful things about being a Celtics fan for the past 15-20 years: the lack of any cohesion or consistency. Not a single player remains on the Celtics roster from Duncan's rookie year. Besides Paul Pierce, who the C's drafted in 1998, not a single Celtics player dates back past the 2003-2004 season. The steadiness of Duncan has allowed San Antonio to develop talent, something the C's have not been able to do with Pierce as their backbone. Duncan's consistency has turned Ginobili and Parker into superstars, has left Robert Horry open at the three-point line in the fourth quarter in every close game, mercifully forced Master Bruce Bowen to finally stop shooting and devote himself to his kung-fu defense, and even made Malik Rose look good enough for Isiah Thomas to offer him over $7.5 million per year.
Sure enough, the Celtics endured a brutal season in 2006-07, and were rightfully left on the outside looking in on the playoffs. Oden and Durant were supposed to change that, and they will... for the Portland Trail Blazers and Seattle SuperSonics. Our condolences for losing out on the next Duncan and LeBron? Watching Duncan and LeBron in the Finals, while the Celtics front-office watches Yi Jianlian work out at their practice facility. That's about as sweet as a smack in the face.
I will never blame anyone for denying me these Celtics who never were - not God, not David Stern, not Danny Ainge, not anyone. It always will hurt a little bit though seeing Duncan raise trophy after trophy, his career described in boring superlatives, and the Spurs crowned "a dynasty." It will hurt to see Oden and Durant battle LeBron for multiple titles in the future. But, sacrificing the present for future is something that the Celtics have come to rely on, and the effects are disastrous. The best we can do for now is to make due with what we have: a bushel of young talent, a number five pick, and the thought of three Celtics that could have been.