With ‘The New Big 3’ — Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen —  of 2008 Boston Celtics has been one of the most popular rosters from the franchise. The trio dominated 66-16 in the regular season 16 years ago to claim the 17th championship for the Celtics. But what was it that made the Celtics roster stand out? 

Appearing on KG certified with Paul Pierce, Garnett revealed how fierce the team’s practice sessions, known as G-Unit runs, could be. “No fouls,” Pierce added while KG went on to describe the intensity and the grasp of other’s movements. The duo knew as soon one fouled. “We’ll both look at each, he knew exactly what that was I knew what that was,” he speaks of the honed dynamic that helped them lift the banner.

He further adds, “The G-Unit runs was only for a certain group of guys. Everybody want blood. Bunch of testosterone and edginess,” KG said on the podcast. While Pierce mentioned there were times when things would almost come to blows, Garnett recalled “Ain’t no almost, there was blows in there some days… It used to be the toughest part of the practice.”

While sharing this part of the interview on his official X account, Kevin Garnett detailed in on the G-Unit runs. He emphasized that these practice runs in Celtics back in 2008 were kind of exclusive. “This was only for guys that wanted all the smoke. Shyt used to get so real in those sessions lord,” he wrote in the caption. The 15x All Star believes these practice runs molded the 08 Celtics as a group, making them a dominant force. “It was iron sharpening iron,” he added.

Now, considering this back story, some may wonder who would win if the 2008 Celtics were to face the 2024 team. While there is no concrete way of reaching a conclusion, a former Celtics star from 08 roster has stated his opinion of this.

Eddie House believes the ’08 Celtics would defeat the ’24 Celtics

As per an article by NBC’s Sports Boston, House gave a fair enough logic that any player would pick his own team in any debate. However, he had some pointer to back his claim that his ’08 team defeats the ’24 Celtics. He believes the teams’s 3-point shooting back then was more proficient than what it is now.

“… If you asked us to shoot that many 3s, are you telling me that Ray Allen couldn’t shoot more 3s and be more productive than any 3-point shooter on this team? You telling me that I couldn’t be more productive than any 3-point shooter on this team?” he said, as per the article. Apart from this, the 2008 NBA champ also believes his team was better at defense than the present day Celtics.

Although he expressed his love for the present team, his logic again was who would bet against themselves. However, the Early Edition poll by Sports Boston had a different approach to the debate than House. Notably, 53 percent of respondents felt the ’24 will emerge victorious over the ’08 Celtics. What’s your opinion about this? Let us know your view in the comments.

Stay tuned for more such updates. And to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, had to say about the marketing genius, watch this video.