Projo Sports Blog

After Sunday's Orlando Magic practice, coach Stan Van Gundy was asked if his players might be intimidated by the Celtics mystique, and all the championship banners hanging at TD Banknorth Garden, when they begin their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series on Monday night.

His response: "For opposing players now, I don't think the Celtic mystique carries much sway. That's something guys our age (49) are aware of, but when these players grew up, the Celtics weren't the Celtics. They weren't Red Auerbach's Celtics, or even Larry Bird's Celtics. Our guys didn't grow up thinking the Celtics were anything above the rest of the league."

According to Tim Povtak of NBA Fanhouse, Van Gundy and Magic center Dwight Howard looked almost incredulous when asked about any ghosts from great Celtics teams from the past.

"I never thought about it," said Howard. "I believe in the Magic mystique. This is our time. They put on their pants just like we do. Their arena has two baskets, a floor and seats like ours does. You can't look at it any differently."

 Tags  Boston Celtics Dwight Howard NBA playoffs Orlando Magic Stan Van Gundy

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