Lakers-Celtics: A Lot of Love and A Lot More Hate

In the LOS ANGELES TIMES, Mark Heisler writes "if, as Jerry West says, the NBA's greatest rivalry wasn't a rivalry at first since the Lakers never won in the '60s and the Boston Celtics never lost, it already seemed bigger than mere life or death, at least in West's life. Nor did the zeal diminish in their '80s rematches when the Showtime Lakers and the Larry Bird Celtics battled on even terms. It was the alpha and omega of rivalries, encompassing all human emotions, starting, of course, with hate. The Lakers hated the Celtics and their blustering leader, Red Auerbach, but then who didn't?" (link)