Dressed up ducklings, dogs, and murals. Celtics fans are hyped for NBA Finals
BOSTON - Causeway Street was awash in green Thursday as fans gathered outside the TD Garden before Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Hours before the game a debate percolated on the sidewalk about former Celtics player Kyrie Irving, who now plays with the Dallas Mavericks. Some wore green T-Shirts featuring his name along with other choice words.
"We all know the story. He stomped on Lucky, and us Celtics didn't take to it very kindly," said Anthony Thornhill from Quincy. He was referring to Irving's first return to Boston in 2021 after leaving the Celtics, when he stomped his foot on the Celtics logo painted on the court. "He promised to re-sign with us, and that's why we don't like Kyrie around here," he said.
Those words didn't sit well with nearby Mavericks fans visiting from Texas. "I asked him what his beef was with Kyrie. He mentioned that he stomped on Lucky. But you know what I think? Kyrie's matured a lot now," said Treyvon Crenshaw from Austin.
"Green fever" around Boston
Elsewhere, Boston fans celebrated the lead-up to the finals in style. The famous duckling statues were adorned with green jerseys featuring players' numbers.
The Fairmont Copley's resident dog was dressed up in a Celts handkerchief, while the hotel's menu offered a special green cocktail and Jay Tacos named for Celtics star Jaylen Brown.
In Cambridge, graffiti artists teamed up to paint a huge Celtics mural in an alley off Massachusetts Avenue in Central Square. "I mean it's the C's you know, why not? If they're going to put their all in, we might as well put our all in," said one of the artists who goes by @Brandalizm. "These are our MVP right now."