Rick Barry In 1975, a future Hall of Famer in basketball—became an NBA champion after the Golden State Warriors persevered. The eight-time All-Star saw Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown win their first championships over 50 years later.
In a special conversation with the Boston Celtics Barry discussed the Boston Celtics’ championship run and the issue surrounding the 2024 Paris Olympics on SI. We have made length, clarity, and grammar edits to our debate.
Santos, Eric Jay:In June, the Boston Celtics won their eighteenth NBA title. How do you feel about their playoff run?
Rick Barry The Celtics need to feel pleased with themselves. That was a really impressive feat. Despite everyone’s extremely high expectations, they managed to live up to the expectations and do what they felt was right. Though there were no certainties, they succeeded. May God reward them for it. Best wishes.
It was quite similar to my former team, the 1975 Golden State Warriors, in that they appeared to have a deep bond with each other. These resembled a family. It was fantastic to watch Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum grow as players and reach the end goal by taking lessons from their prior errors and experiences. The team and coaching staff performed admirably, living up to the high standards set for them.
Eric Jay Santos: Jayson Tatum came in sixth place in the MVP voting for the regular season. Now, where would you place him?
Rick Barry He is unquestionably among the league’s top players. The NBA consistently makes mistakes. For decades, I have been telling them that an uneven schedule cannot support a Most Valuable Player. To have a balanced schedule, they must have an MVP for each of the two conferences—the Eastern and Western. After that, you can debate who deserves it more at each conference. It makes no sense to have only one NBA MVP overall. I don’t understand why the NBA does this when no other league does.
What difference does it make, anyway? The goal of your game is to win titles, not to achieve personal glory. If you are selected, that’s fantastic, but overall, it doesn’t really matter because such choices are made by others and are highly subjective. There is just no objectivity about it. It’s possible that a voting committee member won’t support you if they don’t like you. It’s absurd. The league allowed players to vote for honors the year we won the title, which is the silliest thing ever since it allowed players to let their emotions get involved. As a result, I did not receive the award that I may have been due. However, what’s the deal? It was my championship ring that motivated me to play.
Santos, Eric Jay: Jaylen Brown won the MVP awards for both the NBA Finals and the Eastern Finals, while Tatum was chosen for the All-NBA First Team. Who do you think is the best player on the Celtics?
Rick Barry The Celtics must be rather pleased with both of them, in my opinion. Although Jayson’s shooting percentage and other stats weren’t particularly high, he was a really good player overall. Who gives a damn? To win the title is the ultimate goal. It isn’t about personal distinctions. Together, those individuals and all of their teammates played a fantastic game.
Santos, Eric Jay: Do you believe the Celtics will be in a position to have a dynasty come playoff time?
Rick Barry That is a bit early for it. One was won by them. We’ll see in the upcoming season. It’s difficult to win titles back-to-back. Hopefully, they’ll manage to pull that off. Not that they’ve changed all that much, in my opinion. You have to be careful not to make too many roster changes after a victory. We lost our point guard, Butch Beard, to that, which I believe really affected us and cost us the opportunity to win the championship again. It is hoped that they will have the wisdom to maintain the cohesiveness of their team and avoid taking any actions that could damage their rapport.
Eric Jay Santos: How do you feel about the Olympics in Paris in 2024?
Rick Barry Team USA performed admirably, selecting a number of really gifted players and taking the necessary actions. The last two games, when they truly needed him, were when Stephen Curry played his best. Again, it doesn’t matter that Jayson didn’t even start several of the games. The gold medal is the prize, and it’s a fantastic accomplishment for anyone succeeds in doing so. Jayson didn’t start or play much, and people made a huge issue out of it, yet they won by 20 points. It is obvious that whoever Steve Kerr fielded in the match performed well enough to prevail. Jayson must acknowledge that accepting his place and being content to be a part of something exceptional is a necessary element of playing on a team with so many talented players. It was good to see the team as a whole putting up such a good effort.
Anthony Davis’ transformation into more of a rim protector who wasn’t concerned with scoring truly impressed me. It was an amazing effort because LeBron was emotionally invested in it. I’m particularly delighted since I think Steph Curry is amazing. He plays for my old team, of course, and in those last two games, he really came through for me. They don’t win those games without him. It was pleasing to observe that the entire squad put in a fantastic effort.
Santos, Eric Jay: There was no Brown for Team USA’s Olympic campaign. Do you believe he was overlooked?
Rick Barry You can’t argue that he didn’t deserve to be on the squad, but he wasn’t selected. That is existence. With any lucky, he’ll be on the next Olympic squad and have something to look forward to. Nevertheless, he’s a successful professional basketball player who was named MVP of the Finals. Another fantastic event is the Olympics, but it’s a different world and experience. That escaped his notice. I’m sorry for him. Did he deserve to be a member of the team? Of course, but he wasn’t. That’s life; sometimes things happen that you disagree with.
The greatest letdown of my professional life was my 1964 Olympic team exclusion. I can therefore see why that would have unnerved him in the first place. But Jaylen’s life is predetermined and he’s a fantastic athlete. He’s still young enough to potentially compete in the next Olympics, so hopefully he’ll keep playing.
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