- Larry Bird shared his thoughts on Boston’s bad rap about racism
- The fans have been known for their nasty comments and treatment of players
- LeBron James recollected the time how he was ill-treated by Boston fans
Larry Bird shared his two cents on Boston’s bad rap in terms of racism, and while he added that he didn’t experience any himself, he did hear things about how the city treated some of the Black players.
Speaking to Andscape’s Marc J. Spears, the Celtics legend spoke about the town and also some of the things he had heard in the past.
“Well, I don’t know. To me, Boston is just a hardworking, tough town that loves their sports. I heard a little bit about all [the racism]. I know how Bill Russell was treated when he was there, and it gives you a feeling in your stomach. It makes you want to throw up. But I can’t speak for anybody else that said that it’s forgotten because I didn’t go through that. I didn’t see a lot of that when I was out there. All I knew was when we came into the game they wanted you to win. But you hear about things.”
The fans’ treatment of Russell could rightly be called sickening. In his article for Slam Magazine, Russell explained the Celtics organization was one “of good people,” but he “cannot say the same about the fans or the city.”
“During games, people yelled hateful, indecent things: ‘Go back to Africa,’ ‘Baboon,’ ‘Coon.’ ‘N-word.'”
That said, the Celtics became the first team in the NBA to have an all-Black starting five when Russell, Willie Naulls, Satch Sanders, Sam Jones, and K.C. Jones played together on Dec. 26, 1964, against the Atlanta Hawks. But that, though did not stop fans from throwing derogatory, racist remarks towards the legendary player.
As for Bird, it was fortunate to hear that he wasn’t treated badly by the fans. But the same can’t be said for the other players, who have been vocal about how unruly the fans have been to them.
LeBron James Once Slammed Boston’s Fans: “Racist As F***”
LeBron James was one of the players who had a blunt response when asked why he hated Boston.
Speaking on ‘The Shop’ last year, the Los Angeles Lakers star, who also serves as the partial owner of the Boston Red Sox minced no words when he shared his thoughts about the city’s fans.
“Because they’re racist as f—.”
James also recollected the time when he had beer poured on him one time after a game when the Miami Heat played the Celtics. He also added that he’s more immune to their remarks now.
“They’re gonna say whatever the f— they want to say.”
One of the Celtics stars also recently echoed Bird’s sentiments. Jaylen Brown addressed the systemic racism in basketball and also shed light on Boston (via Sports Illustrated).
“I know that every Celtics fan in our arena is not a racist. We have people from all walks of life, ethnicities, and colors, who are die-hard Celtics fans. So I think painting every Celtics fan as a racist would be unfair. However, Boston, we’ve got a lot of work to do, no question.”
While there is no doubt that there are two sides to the story, that the Celtics players themselves admit the fans could do with some simmering down shows how raucous the fans can be.
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