We continue now with our #5 city/decade on our list of the top 10 cities and decades of the past 110 years. For an overview/explanation of the rankings, and the system used to get them, click here.
The list so far:
#10: Boston, 1970s
#9: Boston, 1980s
#8: Detroit, 1940s
#7: Detroit, 1950s
#6: Boston, 2000s
#5: New York, 1920s
Number 7 on our list was the result of one great player, Gordie Howe, pulling an entire city onto this list nearly by himself. Number 4 is the result of one TEAM playing so well they ended up in the top 5 all-time. This was the only team in that city, that decade, to finish over .500 for the time span. Not that the others didn't contribute--an MVP here, a playoff appearance and title there, but this was sheer dominance by one team over a city, a sport, and a nation. An interesting case indeed, as you will see: does this city really deserve a top-5 spot? Can you imagine living there at the time? It's tough to say no...
This is the obvious case of one team pulling a city up the list—but boy, what a team it was. Bill Russell (left) won 4 MVP awards and led his Celtics to EIGHT titles. Not to mention there was a pretty good player named Carl Yastrzemski winning an MVP award over at Fenway Stadium, and Phil Esposito leading his Bruins to a title, winning his own Hart Trophy in the process. Add it all together, and it's obvious Boston wasn’t exactly a bad place to be. The addition of the winning percentage rightly drops the decade from 3rd to 4th in the final standings, however, as only the Celtics were able to finish the record with a record above .500. The Bruins were especially bad, going .401 a decade BEFORE they went an incredible .719 (See number 10 on our rankings, above). The Patriots were in their first decade of existence, and didn't contribute anything more than a title game appearance, but it’s still a top-5 result for Bostonians, their highest in the rankings.
The Countdown Continues Here: #3
#6: Boston, 2000s
#5: New York, 1920s
Number 7 on our list was the result of one great player, Gordie Howe, pulling an entire city onto this list nearly by himself. Number 4 is the result of one TEAM playing so well they ended up in the top 5 all-time. This was the only team in that city, that decade, to finish over .500 for the time span. Not that the others didn't contribute--an MVP here, a playoff appearance and title there, but this was sheer dominance by one team over a city, a sport, and a nation. An interesting case indeed, as you will see: does this city really deserve a top-5 spot? Can you imagine living there at the time? It's tough to say no...
4) Boston, 1960s (Score: 287.28)—7 MVPs/9 Titles/11 Finals/14 Playoffs/51.3 W%
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| Russell averaged 24.7 rebounds per game in 1963-64 |
The Countdown Continues Here: #3
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