The NBA and NHL In Boston

[sport historian]

Back in the early 60's, a comparison was sometimes drawn between the attendance figures of the NBA's Boston Celtics and the NHL's Boston Bruins. The Celtics were perennial champions and the Bruins (at that time) were low in the NHL standings.


However, the Bruins far outdrew the Celtics. I believe the Celtics averaged something like 8500 a game while the Bruins filled the Boston Garden, around 13500. Even then, this was regarded as "racism." Red Auerbach often started 5 black players.


I remember Howard Cosell drawing this analogy. Bill Russell would harp on "racist Boston" for decades. Other observers pointed out that Massachussetts had always been ice hockey country. My question, for Don and others, is what are the attendance numbers for the NBA and NHL in Boston now? Do the Bruins still outdraw the Celtics?

 

[Don Wassall]

In '03-'04, the Bruins averaged 15,070 fans per game, the Celtics 16,201. The Bruins have been poorly managed for a long time, rarely having a contending team, which eventually was reflected in the attendance figures.


The liberal establishment has never forgiven white working class Boston for its strong resistance to forced busing in the mid-'70s. That in my opinion is the real basis for the "racist" rap against the city that is continually recycled withonly the flimiest"evidence" to support it -- they booed poor Jim Rice and didn't have a sufficient number of Negroes on the Red Sox, the Celtics of the '80s were too white, ridiculous stuff like that.

 

[sport historian]

Absolutely. I can't count the number of times I have seen some sports columnist harp on this subject. Incidentally, I once knew a man who was for a time Tony Conigliaro's agent. and who also knew Ted Williams. He told me some stories about them. These working class Bostonians would ride Williams and later Conigliaro. Ted, especially, was verbally abused while standing in his left field position by the fans seated along the left field foul line. It started when Ted didn't join the military fast enough to suit to suit them in 1942.


I asked this man if it had stopped after Ted went to Korea in 1952. "No, it never really stopped," he answered. The point is that the Boston white working class types were tough on everybody. However, sportswriters push the notion that thiswas directed at black players only.

 

[Southern Knight]

Greetings from the Big Peach: The Thrashers are MUCH more popular here than the Atlanta (Black)hawks.

In fact, there is an ECHL minor league hockey team in the suburbs (the Gwinnett (County) Gladiators) that routinely draws more warm bodies per night than the Hawks. (Note:don't believe the NBA's announced attendance figures, which are a ridiculous joke). The Gladiators have already drawn more than 10,000 fans twice this season, and I'm certain the Hawks have not.

Hot-lanta is full of hockey fans. Several weeks ago, the Thrashers and the Gladiators played on the same night, and the combined attendance for the games was almost 30,000.

 

[IceSpeed2]

One of the worst movies I ever saw was Celtic Pride. Its about the fans of the Celtics during the twilight of Larry Bird's career(the Celtics were still considered "the white team"). The fans kidnap a star for the Utah Jazz"the black team, oh the irony!!!" before game 7 of the championship.
Anyway, the film shows that there were Celtics fanatics; the Celtics had more of a following when they were willing to showcase talented white players, or players that the team's constituency identifies with(occasionally non-white).
The NHL's success in Boston is related to the types of players the Bruins exhibit; tough, hard-nosed, stoic players. They're not the best rolemodels(they're the best out there), but they represent the perceived traits of their fan base.
A big fan favorite was PJ Stock. He is a marginal NHL player. His pugnacious disposition has made him revered.

 

[IceSpeed2]

On another note, Boston public schools are 90% black(even Boston Latin, the exam school). Greater Boston must be the whitest metropolitan area(definitely Boston Proper) in the United States. Many white students are at Catholic or private schools(these are some great sports schools). BC High, Xavarian, the list goes on. Bussing never really had any effect.Sending 2 whites to a school full of inner city blacks could be a death sentance. Of course, South Boston Irish, or North end Italians would probably be just as rough on a black in their neighborhood. People forget that there are a lot of white slum type kids, but there is only an outcry for the poor blacks.