Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Luck. It’s a difficult concept to grasp.

Those who require an explanation for everything say luck is the place where preparation meets opportunity, as if only hard work leads to a positive outcome. Celtics fans know better though, don’t we? We’ve been on the good and bad side of luck enough times to understand how random it truly is.

For nearly 30-years, everything the Green touched turned to gold. We even named our mascot Lucky. We stood on the mountain top, smirking at the world below. When opportunity knocked, we were more prepared and, yes, luckier. Until one night, one cocaine induced night, the luck turned.

The Celtics have had three significant lottery moments, each coming about a decade apart. The first was in 1986, after another Red Auerbach swindle netted Seattle’s first round draft pick in exchange for Gerald Henderson, who was about to be replaced in the starting lineup by Danny Ainge anyway. While the C’s claimed their 3rd NBA title in 6-years, the Sonics tanked and the Commissioner drew the Celtics envelope in the #2 slot (that’s how they did it back then). The Leprechaun, it seemed, was rolling more 7’s and 11’s than a convenience store chain.

And then the dice turned up craps. That #2 pick, Len Bias, snorted his way into the afterlife hours after proudly holding up a Celtics jersey. For those too young to remember what was lost in a basketball sense, visit YouTube and run a search for his name. You’ll see a better, more physically gifted player than Michael Jordan at a similar stage in life. Who’s to say Bias would have become a better pro, but I assure you he was better than Fred Roberts or Brad Lohaus.

Soon thereafter, luck completely abandoned the Green. Bill Walton’s fragile feet shattered. Kevin McHale’s stress fracture reduced him to mortal status. Larry Bird’s body gave out. Auerbach thought Michael Smith was a better prospect than Shawn Kemp or Vlade Divac. Reggie Lewis died.

All of which led to significant lottery moment #2 in 1997, when with a 40% chance at landing Tim Duncan, Boston crashed into Chauncey Billups and Ron Mercer. Throw in Rick Pitino’s impatience, Chris Wallace/Jim O’Brien’s incompetence, and a Danny Ainge rebuilding project that’s lasted longer than the reconstruction of post-WWII Europe, and we’ve arrived at significant lottery moment #3. A few short hours from now, the future of the Boston Celtics will be decided by the bounce of a little white ball. Forget Ping-Pong Diplomacy. This is Ping-Pong Urgency!

Luck into the top pick, and Greg Oden instantly makes the C’s a title threat. Door #2 opens up the possibility of the immensely talented Kevin Durant joining Paul Pierce and Al Jefferson to form a modern day Big Three. It’s not exactly the original version, but in this watered down league, it could be enough to raise that elusive 17th banner. Stumble into the third pick or lower, and the C’s face longer title odds than an American Idol contestant with no neck. (Come on! Tell me Melinda Doolittle doesn’t win that stupid competition if she looks the part of a star?)

So break out those horseshoes. Dust off that rabbit’s foot. Go to church and light a candle if that’s your thing. The Celtics need all the help they can get. Bird, McHale and Parish aren’t walking through that door, but it’s not them we need right now.

If the doorbell rings Tuesday night, the only person I want to see out the peep hole is Lady Luck.

Where do you think the Celtics will end up in the lottery? Will they get shafted again? Will the league “fix” it to help this once proud franchise return to the top?