--After the banner went to the ceiling and the rings were passed out, Paul Pierce went to center court and began thanking the key people in his life -- with many of those folks at the game.
Then he mentioned someone who wasn't in the building. "I just wish Red Auerbach could be here for this," Pierce said.
Earlier, Pierce said, "I think about Red all the time, especially during all this... just wishing that he was here during the time when we won the championship. 'He's in my mind every time opening night is there because I'm always used to him being there handing me a cigar before the game and sitting in the front."
--The Celtics got down to the 15-man roster limit by cutting Darius Miles a week before the first game.
"Darius played well in camp," said GM Danny Ainge. "He did everything the coaches asked him to do. I just think that when it came down to it, there wasn't going to be a spot for him in our regular rotation."
Because Miles had been a model teammate, the Celtics also wanted to do right by him.
"I really just wanted to give him a shot of hooking on with someone else," said Doc Rivers. "He was great, really. It's just with the numbers, I really thought he had to crack the top 10 in the rotation for us to put him on the team, and he didn't do that. But he did a lot of good things, and he definitely can play in this league. You never know if he'll be back here or not.
"He was terrific. Even when we let him go, he thanked us and said it was nice to be in a professional organization and all that. He was professional. I had read and heard a lot of stuff that they said Darius was, and he was none of that here. He was really good."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I hope we have a distraction like this every year." -- Doc Rivers, on the opening night's ceremony.
