Are fans of the Boston Celtics really okay with seeing Marcus Smart as a Los Angeles Laker?
But understanding how the Oklahoma State alum ended up in gold and purple will be different from seeing him play in it. Particularly if that play happens to be part of Los Angeles kicking the Celtics posteriors in what is almost certainly going to be a down year.
The hosts of the CLNS Media "The Big Three NBA" podcast, A. Sherrod Blakely, Gary Washburn, and Kwani Lunis, took some time on a recent episode of their show to talk it over. Check it out below!
If you enjoy this pod, check out the "How Bout Them Celtics," "First to the Floor," and the many other New England sports podcasts available on the CLNS Media network: https://ytubl.ink/3Ffk
Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on:
Spotify: https://tiny.ee/CdKp
iTunes: https://tiny.ee/RK47
YouTube: https://tiny.ee/cOW3
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
44 minutes ago
- USA Today
Former Boston Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca release statement on CT Sun bid status
The group of former Boston Celtics minority owner and Bain Capital executive Steve Pagliuca (hereafter referred to as 'Pagsgroup') has put out a statement clarifying that they have not finalized a bid to purchase the Connecticut Sun, a WNBA franchise currently based in Uncasville, Connecticut at the Mohegan Sun tribal nation casino and resort. This comes in response to Sun team president Jennifer Rizzotti denying the team had been sold to Pagliuca's group as the WNBA also pushed back on claims the team would relocate to Boston. "Contrary to some of the articles that were out yesterday, the team has not been sold," said Rizzotti this weekend. "No transaction has been agreed yet," agreed the statement put out by Pagsgroup, noting the organization's goal of 'keeping New England's WNBA team in New England.' In the comments made by Rizzotti, allusions were made to other interested parties potentially bidding on the team, and the wording of the statement released by Pagsgroup hints that there may be a bidder (or several) interested in relocating the team outside of New England. It could also be framing to cast the group in such a light given little is known about the competition to buy the team at present. We do know that Pagsgroup has the support of Massachusetts Governor and basketball fan Maura Healy, as well as, per the release, Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee. "Our objective, should we acquire the team, is to honor that legacy, further invest in the team, grow its devoted fan base in the region, and build a championship team that players and fans continue to be proud of," suggests the release from Pagsgroup. Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on: Spotify: iTunes: YouTube:
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
"We never shook hands, we never spoke our whole career" - Dominique Wilkins on why he and Larry Bird never got along over their lengthy NBA careers
"We never shook hands, we never spoke our whole career" - Dominique Wilkins on why he and Larry Bird never got along over their lengthy NBA careers originally appeared on Basketball Network. Dominique Wilkins didn't carry grudges often during his Hall of Fame career, but there was one rivalry that never softened while the games were still being played. It wasn't built on trash talk or off-court friction; it was rooted in competition, the kind that leaves no room for pleasantries. That tension lived between Wilkins and Larry Bird. For over a decade, their names sat on opposite sides of some of the hardest-fought battles in Eastern Conference history. Yet, through all those years of trading baskets and bruises, there was never a word exchanged. Not friends with Bird Their mutual silence became a subplot of a basketball era defined by personality clashes and regional pride. Bird, the stone-faced icon from French Lick, and Wilkins, the high-flying sensation out of Atlanta by way of Georgia and North Carolina, were never destined to be friends on the court. "We never shook hands, we never spoke our whole career, ever until we retire," Wilkins confessed. What separated them wasn't hatred, but a quiet, hardened edge that only long-term competitors can develop. Wilkins entered the league in 1982, at a time when Bird's Boston Celtics were the standard in the East. Boston had won the title in 1981, reached another Finals in '84 and ruled the conference with a type of force that suffocated rising teams like Wilkins' Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks weren't considered serious contenders during the 1980s, but they had toughness — and Wilkins was the engine. His blend of relentless scoring and airborne grace gave Atlanta its pride during those years. Every time the Hawks met the Celtics, it was clear that Wilkins wasn't stepping on the floor to bow to history. He was there to challenge it. Their playoff clashes in the late '80s were particularly intense. The 1988 Eastern Conference semifinals became one of the most celebrated duels in NBA postseason history. In Game 7 of that series, Wilkins dropped 47 points in Boston Garden, but Bird responded with 34, scoring 20 in the fourth quarter alone and pushed the Celtics over the line. Wilkins left the court without a handshake and without regret. The silence between them continued, not because of bitterness, but because neither man needed to speak to know what had just relationship Wilkins didn't forget the feeling of that playoff loss. He carried that loss like a badge, proof that he had given everything. The respect existed, buried beneath the rivalry. They never crossed personal lines, but they never tried to cross paths either. Wilkins admitted later that the lack of interaction was real. The coldness eventually thawed, but only once the jerseys were off for good. In retirement, the competition faded and what remained was respect. Time, more than words, mended the gap. "Larry and I have a very cool friendship, relationship that we see each other we always give each other respect and have a short conversations," Wilkins said. "Larry don't talk a lot, but the respect that he showed me. I remember after that seventh game he said to me, 'Man, you gave us everything. We won but we both deserve to win this game.'" That kind of acknowledgement takes time, sweat and decades of shared battles. Their connection now is down to a memory that only two men who went through it together could fully understand. Their paths would officially cross again in 1994 when Bird was holding an executive role in Boston. The Celtics signed Wilkins and he played for a single season. The respect that had formed through years of collision became more visible in those encounters and the kind of rivalry that defines legacies and burns into basketball history. And in that sense, both men walked away with something story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
"That's when I resigned from the Celtics. I have never looked back' - Larry Bird on why he cut off ties to the Boston Celtics
"That's when I resigned from the Celtics. I have never looked back' - Larry Bird on why he cut off ties to the Boston Celtics originally appeared on Basketball Network. Larry Bird wishes that his years in the Boston Celtics front office would be forgotten. For someone who had given every piece of himself to the franchise, from rookie phenom to three-time NBA champion and league MVP, it seemed natural that retirement would lead him back to the only basketball home he ever knew. There was no hesitation when he accepted a front office role with the Celtics. In his eyes, it was an extension of his loyalty to the team that shaped his career and legacy. Leaving the Celtics Bird lasted only five years in the front office and left when he felt that his opinions and views in the front office weren't valued or even heard. He didn't plan on returning to Boston. "That's when I resigned from the Celtics. I have never looked back … It's too bad my time with the Celtics ended that way," Bird said. "I had some great years in Boston, and I still love it out there. I'd love to go back someday, but things have changed, and that whole organization is completely different than it was. There's nothing for me there now." In 1992, Bird officially retired from playing, and just two years later, in 1994, he joined the Celtics front office, working alongside then-owner Paul Gaston. He was named special assistant to the Celtics' senior management, a title that sounded important but came with the foggy reality of limited authority. He had spent his career speaking with his game, leading by example and expecting mutual respect. In the front office, that clarity disappeared. What seemed to be collaborative decision-making on paper was, in Bird's experience, something very different behind closed doors. Several decisions and circumstances left him disillusioned. During his time, the Celtics went through a turbulent period. The team struggled on the court, and ideas clashed in the front office. Bird, whose basketball instincts had never failed him, was routinely sidelined in discussions, and his input began to carry less and less weight. He was brought in to offer guidance, but found himself in a position where his name was on the door, yet his influence was lost friendship Adding to that frustration was the situation surrounding the head coaching position. The team had fallen into a rough patch under M.L. Carr, and ownership began floating the idea of finding new leadership. Bird was asked to be part of the process of scouting for replacements and in his mind, Carr had already been made aware of the plan. But that assumption turned out to be wrong — and costly. "It's disappointing that so many relationships I had with people fell apart," Bird said. "But I would feel a lot worse about it if I thought I had done something wrong. I'm not wrong. I'm sorry M.L. didn't like it that he lost the coaching job, but it wasn't my decision. And I never would have purposely kept it from him about looking for a new coach. I thought he knew." "And I feel bad that Dennis Johnson was frustrated," he continued. "He, like everyone else, probably thinks I should just stop everything and tell the Pacers to hire him, but I can't do that. I don't believe that should end our friendship." Carr had been an energetic, defensive-minded former teammate and Bird had always shared mutual respect with him. But the narrative became complicated when it emerged that the coaching change had been orchestrated behind Carr's back. Even if Bird had acted with good intentions, believing his former teammate had been informed, the damage was already done. In Carr's eyes, it was betrayal. On another front, Dennis Johnson, who was then an assistant coach and another Celtics great, had expected to be part of the conversation about the head coaching role. Bird, who was involved in listing potential candidates, did not include Johnson and also did not include him on the shortlist for an assistant coaching position with the Indiana Pacers. It created a sense of being overlooked, and Johnson's disappointment extended to their personal relationship. Bird would later find the professional respect he sought when he joined the Pacers in 1997 as head coach, winning Coach of the Year in his first season and leading the team to the NBA Finals in 2000. Unlike his Celtics front office experience, his time in Indiana allowed him to call the shots, earn respect on merit and work in an environment that trusted his story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
