They Said It: Quotable Quotes About the Celtics

To pass the time until the Celtics can redeem themselves on Friday against the Nets, I offer the following abbreviated version of Quotable Quotes:

“You never know. Some teams can jell quickly. I thought that they would take longer to jell, but they’ve proved everybody wrong. They’re really, really good.”
-Shane Battier before the Rockets’ loss to Boston

“Everybody glorifies their Big Three scoring. You [also] have to glorify the defensive side of basketball for them.”
-Rafer Alston before that same Rockets loss

“They look at us, it’s crazy, but as much publicity that they’ve gotten, they’re looking at us like we’re the big dog, And that’s validation of that; when they win a game like that they go crazy like it’s the Super Bowl.”
-Chauncey Billups, reflecting two days after the Detroit loss to Boston

“They were so good. We just really, really started to dislike — not dislike — close to hate (them). It would just make me sick to see Bird do what he was able to do as a basketball player. And as it went on, it got more intense and more intense, and then we ended up with all of the things that happened. You know, slugging each other, all of that sort of thing, and some fights. That went on because of the rivalry. It was pretty brutal at that time”
-Former Coach Chuck Daly on the Celtics-Pistons Rivalry in the 1980’s.

“We still look at Detroit as the cream of the crop in the Eastern Conference, and I’m pretty sure that they don’t look past us as being one of the top teams in the Western Conference.”
-Jerry Stackhouse on the Pistons, following Detroit’s loss to Boston

“Why the hell can’t they stop Nazr Mohammed?!”
-Kevin Henkin, shouting to no one in particular during the Celtics perplexing loss to the Charlotte Bobcats