The Dave Cowens Interview
By:
Michael D. McClellan
|
Saturday, March 5th, 2005
His college career over, Cowens eagerly went about the business of preparing for the NBA draft and life as a professional basketball player. Meanwhile, a reconstruction of sorts was going on in Boston. The Celtics, built and coached by the legendary Red Auerbach, had dominated the National Basketball Association for more than a decade. That dynasty came crashing down following the 1968-69 NBA season when Russell retired as the Celtics’ player/coach, leaving Auerbach the arduous task of retooling the once-mighty Boston franchise. Many doubted Auerbach’s legendary Midas touch, claiming that the sheer luck of coaching Russell had everything to do with his genius. Undaunted, Auerbach confidently predicted a return to glory. The new era began with the selection of crafty point guard Jo Jo White and the appointment of former Celtic Tommy Heinsohn as head coach. Still, there were holes. Plenty of them. The center position topped the list of priorities, and for good reason: Weak in the paint, the 1969-70 Boston Celtics finished the season with 34 wins and a sixth-place showing in the Eastern Division – placing the team fourth overall in the 1970 NBA Draft.
It was a draft long on talent, and peppered with names that would make plenty of noise throughout the run-and-gun ‘70s. Future stars Bob Lanier, Rudy Tomjanovich and “Pistol’ Pete Maravich went 1-2-3. Auerbach snatched Cowens with the next pick, much to the chagrin of Bob Cousy and the Cincinnati Royals, and celebrated with a deep drag on his trademark cigar. A new era of Boston Celtics basketball was born.
Cowens arrived in town unafraid of the long shadow cast by Russell and the other ghosts of Celtics past. Holdovers from those great teams included Satch Sanders and John Havlicek, and Cowens wasted little time earning their respect. The rookie averaged 17.0 points and 15.4 rebounds per game, standout numbers that garnered him co-Rookie of the Year honors with Portland’s Geoff Petrie. His full-throttle style also struck an instantaneous chord with the Boston Garden faithful, who identified with the rookie’s work ethic and blue collar attitude. So intense was Cowens that he led the league in fouls that first season, committing 350 (4.2 per game). Reigning in the fiery young talent was discussed by the Boston Celtics cognoscenti, but the subject was entertained half-heartedly at best. Why? Because hustle and desire were the cornerstones of this player who, despite an obvious size disadvantage, consistently held his own against the best big men in the league. To take that away would be to rob him of his most valuable weapon. Imagine Sampson without hair, and you begin to get the idea.
With Cowens the catalyst, the Celtics improved from 33-48 to 44-38 – hardly the big move orchestrated behind the play of Larry Bird nearly a decade later, but the 1970-71 Boston Celtics were hardly as deep and as talented as Bird’s first team either. Still, it was obvious to all that the Celtics were simply a much better team with Cowens in the paint, and word of Boston’s burgeoning young superstar was spreading quickly through the league.
When you talk to those who played both with and against Dave Cowens, the topic inevitably turns to those armor-piercing eyes. They were an intimidating glimpse into the soul of the ultimate warrior, and time has done little to dull the image of Cowens, eyes ablaze, ripping down rebounds among the goliaths of the day. Bird had that same stare. Michael Jordan, too. All of the great ones have it to some degree. Cowens’ lasers were the stuff of legend.
Former teammate Paul Westphal: “The look in his eyes is something that I can’t find words to adequately describe. You had to see that look for yourself to know what I’m talking about. It was scary. He was so focused on the game. It didn’t matter whether it was ripping down a big rebound or diving for a loose ball. It was pure intensity.”