The Celtics brought home gold, so Boston fans covered the city in green.
After three consecutive wins in the NBA Finals, the Celtics fell to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 4 before taking it home in Game 5, winning the league championship June 17 106-88. With its 18th championship title, the “Green Machine” broke its tie with the Lakers for holding the most championship titles of any franchise in the NBA. The City of Boston hosted a parade June 21 to celebrate the “City of Champions,” with over one million people estimated to have attended.
The players, riding Boston Duck Tours duck boats like Bay State royalty, were carted through the city, starting at TD Garden and ending on Boylston Street near the Hynes Convention Center. White and green confetti showered fans coming from all corners of the city and state.
“I was born and raised in Boston, and this is my kid’s first parade — it’s pretty exciting to share this moment,” said Jessica McClure, who brought her family to the event. “I shared this moment with my dad, and now I get to pass it on to my sons, it just feels kind of full circle.”
Legions of college students sang victory songs as they marched up the parade route. Some, waving flags or dangling from the top of traffic posts, led chants that could be heard around the block. Fans wearing full Celtic garb shared their connection to the team.
“We’re a basketball family, four brothers in it, and we grew up playing basketball our whole lives,” dedicated fan and parade attendee Matt Plassman said. “My mom loves basketball, and we got to watch the playoffs with her, so it’s super exciting being part of a championship and seeing a homegrown team take it and really win as a team.”
Plassman and his brother Mike lamented the losses in previous seasons when the Celtics came close to winning the championship, but ultimately fell short.
“To see this year happening and it coming together, you’re like, ‘This is for us — this is for them, it’s for us too,’” Mike Plassman said.
The city cheered as one as every street in Boston ran green with Celtics pride. Parade cheerleaders, performers and fanatics painted green let out howling screams and gave enthusiastic high-fives to strangers.
“I’m proud to raise my kids here, and it’s fantastic to see so many people come together and just have all this positivity,” McClure said. “We need more of this in the world.”
