<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">At his public introduction as Celtics savior, Kevin Garnett tossed his first pitch to the Red Sox' David Ortiz and the earth shook under rickety old Fenway Park. The Big Ticket and Big Papi hugged to the surround sound of a long, loud ovation this week, a symbolic scene for a city that still takes its shots for the sins of yesteryear. "There's no question that it was certainly symbolic of what sports can be all about," said Peter Roby, the longtime director of the Northeastern University Center for the Study of Sports in Society." As NBA stars initially resisted chances to be parts of trades to the Celtics this summer, that old tag of Boston as an unpleasant destination for black players resurfaced again. Once more, there were vague charges that star ballplayers were leery of playing there because of doubts that transcended merely a bad team in a losing, lottery state. As it turned out, justly or not, there's a sense that the Boston Celtics needed the benefit ? perhaps even the blessing ? that comes with a star of Garnett's stature. "I think it's an old clich&eactute; that's going to soon disappear, if it's not evaporating as we speak," Garnett told the Boston Globe." ? People say a lot of things, but to experience something is totally different." So, you wonder: If this turns out to be a fabulous run for Garnett in Boston, do the Celtics ever have to defend themselves on race relations again? </div> Read More
