(CRAFT)[WE WERE ON A COLLISION COURSE.]

When Boston acquired multiple All-Stars in 2008, we knew it was going to come down to the two of us. That happened in 2008, and it happened again in 2010.

In retrospect, it was awesome to be a part of that historic rivalry. I knew the history. I knew what Jerry West went through, knew what the Showtime Lakers went through. That definitely added to the meaning of it all. At the time, though, my mindset was: They’re in the way and I have to win; I have to win this title. It didn’t matter that they had three future Hall-of-Famers and Rasheed Wallace and Rajon Rondo and others. It didn’t matter because the history books wouldn’t reflect that. The only thing that gets recorded is titles, and we had to fight our way through those guys and win one.