Prior to the start of the 2007-08 NBA season, then-Celtics coach Doc Rivers decided to hold training camp in Rome as part of the NBA Europe Live Tour so that his team could bond over the concept of Ubuntu.
It paid off as the Celtics, led by Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo, were able to ride the strong team chemistry they developed during the offseason in Italy all the way to the NBA championship.
Now, more than a decade later, that chemistry is still strong (for the most part).
In a piece on ESPN, veteran NBA scribe Jackie MacMullan reports that members of the 2008 Celtics, including Pierce, Rondo, Garnett and Rivers, still have an ongoing group-text chain.
The thread, which also includes Tony Allen and Kendrick Perkins, has endured trades, retirements and moves to other organizations. To last, the chain has had to have that component as no one on the thread is still a member of the Celtics and only Rondo still plays in the NBA.
“It’s the closest group I’ve ever been around,” Rivers, who now coaches the Clippers, said. “It’s amazing how often we all still reach out when something great happens or even when things don’t go very well. There was a real family element to that group that I’ll always cherish. It was very special, how protective they were of each other. It’s what every coach would want to have for their team.”
However, the chain is missing one member: Ray Allen.
A key member of Boston’s championship team, Allen remained with the club for four more seasons but departed in 2012 to sign with the rival Miami Heat.
Demonized for breaking up the Celtics championship core, Allen has not been able to work his way back into Garnett’s good graces even though other former teammates have squashed their beefs with him.
“The best part of that group, and, I guess, the worst part, too, was they’re just so competitive,” Rivers said. “They felt very strongly, ‘You cannot leave this family. If you do, you’re an outcast. And, if you go to a rival, holy crap, you’re an extreme outcast.’ So that’s what happened with Ray.”
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