Washington (AP) President Joe Biden’s Secret Service code name, Celtic, turned the White House green on Thursday when he invited Coach Joe Mazzulla and the Boston Celtics to the South Lawn to celebrate the team’s historic 18th NBA title.
In a custom thought to have started when President John F. Kennedy visited with Bill Russell’s 1963 Celtics, Biden greeted and showed the 2024 NBA champions around the Oval Office. Overall, eight of the previous 13 presidential administrations have seen the league’s most decorated team win at least one championship.
There is more to the Celtics than just basketball. Biden reminded the fans, “They’re a way of life,” referencing Red Auerbach, the patriarch of the Celtics, prior to accepting a No. 46 jersey from guard Derrick White and All-Star Jayson Tatum.
Biden mentioned that Celtic is his code name with the Secret Service.
Actually. The president said, because I’m Irish. In their hearts, everyone behind me is Irish. This prize makes me feel especially proud. To all of you Celtics, congrats from an elderly Irish Celtic.
President Joe Biden, center, speaks during an event to welcome the Boston Celtics and celebrate their victory in the 2024 National Basketball Association Championship, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Susan Walsh/Associated Press photo
Biden, the nation’s oldest president and one of the youngest senators in history, claimed he felt a connection to Mazzulla, who was 35 when he led the Celtics to the championship in his second season.
According to Biden, Joe is the youngest head coach to win a championship since the legendary Bill Russell. I informed him that although I was the youngest once, I am now the oldest. I preferred being the youngest.
Before Biden and team owner Wyc Grousbeck joined the Celtics on the risers facing the Washington Monument, a band playing “Showing up to Boston” welcomed them. Behind them, green lights shone from the White House’s eaves. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, and the majority of the state’s congressional delegation were among those present.
I had no idea what to anticipate. “I was more excited than I thought I was going to be when I walked in,” White later told reporters. The finest part was being in the White House, where all the important choices are made and all the exciting things take place.
Beau Jr., Biden’s 4-year-old grandson, tried on his championship ring, according to Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca. (On Thursday, Oshae Brissett, a 2024 player who isn’t playing for the Celtics this season, attended the ceremony and was given his championship ring.)
Additionally, Biden was given a commemorative basketball, which he threw to Celtics center Al Horford and then to Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey, who was seated in the front row.
White told reporters that he wasn’t anticipating a pump fake. I was impressed because it’s more difficult to pass in a suit.
Biden was well-informed about the Celtics’ past and their achievements from the previous season, when they easily won 64 games in the regular season, the fourth-best total in the team’s history and their most since taking home the 2008 championship. They defeated the Dallas Mavericks in five games and finished 16-3 in the playoffs.
Mike Zarren, the team’s vice president and analytics expert, was ecstatic when Biden pointed out that the 24 Celtics had the highest points per possession ratio in NBA history.
The President of the United States is discussing points per possession, demonstrating how far the basketball statistics world has advanced! After chatting with reporters at the ceremony, Zarren made a post on X.
Following the celebrations, members of the Celtics organization returned to the White House to discuss pet-related issues with administration officials. These issues included Curbside Care, which offers medical assistance to new mothers in underprivileged communities, and Raise the Age, which aims to have 18 to 20-year-olds treated as juveniles in the criminal justice system.
In a subsequent video chat, Grousbeck told reporters that the day was both incredibly exhilarating and poignant. This had not been our main concern. After completing the banner and opening night, everything became business as usual. Joe (Mazzulla) wants everyone to concentrate on the future and not spend too much time thinking about the past. That being said, Joe and everyone else here appeared to be having a terrific time.
Zarren claimed that two years earlier, he had to put up with the Golden State Warriors’ visit and had a conversation with a Secret Service member who was a Celtics supporter.
He wished his Celtics were present, so he informed them it was a bittersweet moment. They assured him that they would arrive shortly, Zarren added. He therefore saw our appearance within there as a positive time.
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