{"id":18333,"date":"2024-11-22T17:54:41","date_gmt":"2024-11-22T17:54:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/?p=18333"},"modified":"2024-11-22T17:54:41","modified_gmt":"2024-11-22T17:54:41","slug":"inside-the-celtics-emotional-and-uplifting-visit-to-the-white-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/?p=18333","title":{"rendered":"Inside the Celtics\u2019 \u2019emotional and uplifting\u2019 visit to the White House"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\">\n<header class=\"m-article-header m-article-header--standard\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span id=\"article-header-primary-term\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"a-term a-term--primary\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/tag\/boston-celtics\/\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCeltics\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"m-article-header__sub-headline\">From presidential selfies to history lessons with the Secret Service and &#8220;unbelievable&#8221; apple cider, the Celtics seemed to have a blast in D.C.<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"a-photo m-article-header__photo \">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"768\" height=\"432\" src=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg\" class=\"attachment-16:9 size-16:9 wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=200 200w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=300 300w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=400 400w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=500 500w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=600 600w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=700 700w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=800 800w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/G2LMD46EGKPXXCP5JHFXPV5COU-67404b00b6c6b-768x432.jpg?width=900 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\"\/><figcaption class=\"a-photo__caption\">\n\tPresident Biden shares a laugh with the Celtics at the White House. <em> AP Photo\/Susan Walsh<\/em>\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"m-block t-amp__list-container m-article-list-container m-article-list-container--frame-border a-border-frame  a-list-header__headline--red m-article-list--alternative--default  m-article-list--floated\">\n<ul class=\"t-amp__list a-list--no-style m-article-list m-article-list--recirculation m-article-list--has-images \">\n<li class=\"m-article-list__item m-article-list__item--featured\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"m-article-list__link-wrapper\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/sports\/boston-celtics\/2024\/11\/21\/celtics-jrue-holiday-baby-jrue-powell-quotes\/?p1=article_recirc_inline_feature\" data-p1=\"article_recirc_inline_feature\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"432\" src=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg\" class=\"t-amp__list-image m-article-list__image m-article-list__image--full wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" aria-hidden=\"true\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=200 200w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=300 300w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=400 400w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=500 500w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=600 600w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=700 700w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=800 800w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/unnamed-673fec309f57e-768x432.jpg?width=900 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\"\/>\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p><h4 class=\"m-article-list__headline t-amp__list-headline \">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"m-article-list__link a-link a-link--inline a-link--text-link a-link--text-link-dark\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAt the White House, baby Jrue Powell meets the Celtics star he was named after\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/li>\n<li class=\"m-article-list__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"m-article-list__link-wrapper\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/sports\/boston-celtics\/2024\/11\/21\/joe-biden-pump-fake-al-horford-pass-celtics-white-house-video\/?p1=article_recirc_inline_feed\" data-p1=\"article_recirc_inline_feed\"><\/p>\n<p><h4 class=\"m-article-list__headline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"m-article-list__link a-link a-link--inline a-link--text-link a-link--text-link-dark\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWatch: President Biden pump-fakes a basketball and passes it to Al Horford\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 There was a moment during the Celtics\u2019 White House tour when <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nba\/player\/_\/id\/3078576\/derrick-white\">Derrick White<\/a> was eyeing President Joe Biden\u2019s chair inside the Oval Office, team co-owner Steve Pagliuca said.<\/p>\n<p>Pagliuca thought White might try to sit in it, but the Celtics guard ended up just standing behind it. <\/p>\n<p>The visit to the White House, which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/sports\/boston-celtics\/2024\/11\/21\/boston-celtics-white-house-joe-biden-nba-championship-title-18\/\">commemorated the Celtics\u2019 record 18th NBA championship<\/a>, was even more exciting than White imagined it would be.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t really know what to expect,\u201d White said. \u201cI was kind of looking forward to it and then when we walked in, I was a little bit more excited than I thought I was going to be.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think it was just a lot of excitement just to be in the White House with all the decisions and stuff that goes on in there,\u201d White added. \u201cWe were able to go into the Oval Office, which was pretty cool. Being where all the decisions and the big things happen, that was the coolest part.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The Celtics met at their team hotel and took three busses over to the White House. The team had a rehearsal for the ceremony during which they practiced where everybody involved would stand. After that, there was a reception that Biden attended.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe President walked in and was very warm and engaging,\u201d Celtics governor Wyc Grousbeck said. \u201cChatted with him at some length and really felt like we got to know him. And then he joined a few of our small groups, said hello, and he actually took a selfie with me and Amelia and Joe Mazzulla. We have a selfie with Joe Biden that he took, so just an amazing, warm encounter with a great man, great person.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Biden had one of his grandchildren with him, according to Pagliuca, and he placed a Celtics championship ring on the child\u2019s finger. <\/p>\n<p>Meeting Biden and learning about White House history were highlights for White. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the Secret Service was giving JB a history lesson,\u201d White said. \u201cAnd I kind of walked over there and kind of listened to the stories and all the different pictures and why they\u2019re up there.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJust hearing different stories like that was really cool. The apple cider was unbelievable. When President Biden came it was really cool to see him. I had never seen a president in person so that was pretty cool.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Biden came well prepared for the appearance, Pagliuca said. The president mentioned some of the Celtics\u2019 stats.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI saw (vice president of basketball operations) Mike Zarren, our stat guy, stood up and started cheering when Biden was talking about points per possession,\u201d Pagliuca said. \u201cMike thought that would never happen in his career.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>There were quite a few more people in attendance on Thursday than the last time the<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/celtics?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor\"> Celtics<\/a> visited the White House in 2008, Pagliuca said. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell, it was a very emotional day,\u201d Pagliuca said. \u201cI think this is one of the largest groups that has ever come to the White House to celebrate a championship, even far larger than 2008. So, every senator, congressperson, person of government with Massachusetts, the president, and our players it was just a very emotional and uplifting day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For years, this Celtics group had finished just short of winning a title. They\u2019ve made six of the last seven Eastern Conference finals. They lost to the Golden State Warriors in the 2022 NBA Finals.<\/p>\n<p>But this time, the Celtics came out on top, and on this day they were honored as champions. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s funny. I was talking to a Secret Service agent from Massachusetts inside and he was apparently here for the Warriors two years ago,\u201d Zarren said. \u201cHe told them it was a bittersweet moment because he wished the Celtics were here, and they said to him don\u2019t worry they\u2019ll be there soon. So, for him, it was a good moment to see us show up inside there.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"o-author-single has-avatar\">\n<header class=\"m-author-card\">\n<div class=\"a-image a-image--square m-author-card__image\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/cropped-Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-4.59.30-PM-6706db53ae1d7-6706dcbabfba0-242x242.png\" alt=\"Profile image for Khari A. Thompson\"\/>\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"m-author-card__text\">\n<h3 class=\"m-author-card__title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/author\/kharia-thompson\">Khari A. Thompson<\/a><\/h3>\n<p><span class=\"m-author-card__subtitle\">Sports Reporter<\/span>\t<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section class=\"author-info\">\n<hr class=\"m-author__section--hr\"\/>\n<div class=\"m-author__section\">\n<p>Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<hr class=\"m-author__section--hr\"\/>\t<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m-block m-generic-cta&#10;&#9; m-generic-cta--post-content&#9; m-generic-cta--dark&#9; m-generic-cta--homepage&#9; m-generic-cta--email-signup&#9;&#9; m-generic-cta-block-style--default &#10;&#9;t-amp__generic-cta\">\n<div class=\"m-generic-cta__wrap\">\n<div class=\"m-generic-cta__content\">\n<h3 class=\"m-generic-cta__title\">Sign up for Celtics updates\ud83c\udfc0<\/h3>\n<p class=\"m-generic-cta__subtitle\">Get breaking news and analysis delivered to your inbox during basketball season.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script>\n\t\tvar consent = 'grant';\n\t\t\/* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable. *\/\n\t\t\t\t\tconst onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );\n\t\t\tif ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) ) {\n\t\t\t\t\/* Checking to see if the user has consented to the use of cookies.\n\t\t\t\t* If they have not, it is deleting the cookie.\n\t\t\t\t* This will comment for now, until further notice.\n\t\t\t\t*\/\n\t\t\t\t\/\/if ( onetrustStorageConsent.C0002 === false ) {\n\t\t\t\t\/\/\tdocument.cookie = '_fbp=;expires=Thu, 01 Jan 2010 00:00:00 UTC; path=\/; domain=.boston.com';\n\t\t\t\t\/\/}\n\t\t\t\t\/* Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0002.\n\t\t\t\t* If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.\n\t\t\t\t* If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.\n\t\t\t\t* Documentation https:\/\/developers.facebook.com\/docs\/meta-pixel\/implementation\/gdpr\n\t\t\t\t*\/\n\t\t\t\tif ( onetrustStorageConsent.C0002 !== true ) {\n\t\t\t\t\tconsent = 'revoke';\n\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n\t\t{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n\t\tn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n\t\tif(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n\t\tn.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n\t\tt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n\t\ts.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',\n\t\t'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n\t\tfbq('consent', consent);\n\t\tfbq('init', '989222871864976');\n\t\tfbq('track', 'PageView');\n\t<\/script><script type=\"module\">\n\t\tvar consent = 'grant';\n\t\t\/* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable. *\/<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\tconst onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );\n\t\t\t\/* Checking to see if the user has consented to the use of cookies.\n\t\t\t* If they have not, it is deleting the cookie.\n\t\t\t* This will comment for now, until further notice.\n\t\t\t*\/\n\t\t\t\/\/if ( onetrustStorageConsent.C0002 === false ) {\n\t\t\t\/\/\tdocument.cookie = '_fbp=;expires=Thu, 01 Jan 2010 00:00:00 UTC; path=\/; domain=.boston.com';\n\t\t\t\/\/}\n\t\t\t\/* Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0002.\n\t\t\t* If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.\n\t\t\t* If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.\n\t\t\t* Documentation https:\/\/developers.facebook.com\/docs\/meta-pixel\/implementation\/gdpr\n\t\t\t*\/\n\t\t\tif ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) && (onetrustStorageConsent.C0002 !== true ) ) {\n\t\t\t\tconsent = 'revoke';\n\t\t\t}<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()\n\t\t{n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}\n\t\t;if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;\n\t\tn.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n\t\tt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,\n\t\tdocument,'script','https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n\t\tfbq('consent', consent);\n\t\tfbq('init', '813236348753005');\n\t\tfbq('track', \"PageView\");\n\t<\/script><\/p>\n<hr style=\"border-top: 2px solid #ccc; margin-top: 20px;\">\n<p><em>Source: <\/em> <em><a href=\"https:\/\/politics.einnews.com\/article\/762920016\/iAKUS9qI-Q7cNJpk?ref=rss&amp;ecode=kmfm9fDbRbj4OPCJ\">politics.einnews.com\u2026<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Celtics From presidential selfies to history lessons with the Secret Service and &#8220;unbelievable&#8221; apple cider, the Celtics seemed to have a blast in D.C. President Biden shares a laugh with the Celtics at the White House. AP Photo\/Susan Walsh At the White House, baby Jrue Powell meets the Celtics star he was named after Watch: [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=18333"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18333\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=18333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=18333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpt.m2mbeta.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=18333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}