Eagle-Tribune Blogs: Burt Talks Sports

There is a different feel around here, one that even drwarfs the Eastern Conference championship.
Everybody from the national media is here. This is the story right now. If the games are good, well, then it will be the story of the year.
Nobody wants to miss them.
You are going to see a lot of white on your TV screen in the stands. Every seat has a Celtics T-shirt on it. My guess is 95 percent of the fans will wear them.
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It might be worth coming down the Garden area for tonight’s game, or at the very least Sunday night’s tilt. You can feel the energy on the street.
The scalpers are out by the hundreds. I have seen about half of them, as they are regulars at Celtics and Red Sox games. But there is a contingent, probably from New York, that are here looking to make a kill on this “rivalry.”
There is a huge 40-foot replica of the Larry O’Brien Trophy outside of the TD Banknorth Garden. It is ridiculously big. Many fans are stopping in front posing for pictures.
All of the bars nearby, and there are about 20 of them within 500 yards of the Garden, are swarming with people. Some are coming to the game, but many are just soaking in the atmosphere.
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Don’t expect the Celtics No. 1, Patriots coach Bill Belichick, to be here tonight. The Patriots start mini-camp tomorrow morning. And this game probably won’t be completed until midnight. Word has it Belichick will be here on Sunday night with girlfriend.
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I ran into former Patriots GM Pat Sullivan, whose dad Billy created the franchise in 1960, about three hours before the opening tap. He has a successful media truck leasing business, which is now out of Hudson, N.H.
Sullivan is leasing a truck to ABC-TV in Boston two more in Los Angeles.
He told a funny story about Red Auerbach from the 1980s.
“I was driving Red to the game and he brought up cheerleaders,” said Sullivan. “He said, ‘Why do you have cheerleaders?’ But before he let me answer he said, ‘Don’t say because everyone else has.’ ”
Sullivan said Red lamented about the prospects, “We don’t have cheerleaders and look what it has done for us.”
Sullivan said Red also asked him a question he already knew the answer to.
“Do the Green Bay Packers have cheerleaders?” Auerbach said to Sullivan.
“I told him, ‘No, they don’t.’ ” said Sullivan. “Red said, ‘I didn’t think so.’ That was Red Auerbach. He wouldn’t like all of this.”
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I will check in a little later. If you have any thoughts, questions or comments, send them here.

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