History of the Celtics
In the 1955-56 seasons, Auerbach acquired center Bill Russell, who led the Celtics to their first of 16 NBA championships. This was the beginning of what would be the team's NBA dynasty, which saw 11 NBA titles in an astounding 13 seasons, carving their name into basketball history. Just as it was ushered in with Russell, the undisputed Dynasty came to a sudden halt when he finally retired at the end of a landmark career in 1969. To this day, the 8 consecutive championships are not only a basketball record, but a principle record that is so far unmatched in any professional sport's history.
A slump in the Celtics' track record in 1970 was overcome by the acquisition of star players Dave Cowens, Paul Silas, and Jo Jo White. Despite a number of championships, the 70's were a decade of ups and downs, a striking contrast to the seemingly infallible 56-69 seasons. The forward momentum of the Celtics was finally blunted in 1976 when the team finally endured a dry spell of a staggering 6 years before seeing another NBA Championship title. Even then, championships have been few and far between, the last in 1986, while the last Conference Championship was in 1987. The 2001-2006 years have been called the "rebuilding years" as the team has desperately attempted to return to its dynasty forming history. The team, however, even in its currently failing state, remains an icon in not only NBA, but sporting history.