Take a peek inside new Celtics ‘vault’ at Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield

SPRINGFIELD — Vaults are for treasures. For Celtics fans, this is truly a gold mine.

On Friday, the highly anticipated “The Vault: Boston Celtics Unlocked” held its grand opening at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, a new exhibit.

The vault’s riches? As of Friday, the collection holds over 71 Celtics artifacts — and the list will grow.

The collection was crafted by Matt Zeysing, the hall’s vice president, curator and historian. Celtics fans are in for a treat.

“The vault exhibit invokes a feeling of nostalgia, while adding value to the experience,” Zeysing said Friday. “The truth at the core of it all is that the vault reflects maintaining legacy, while ensuring our childhood memories are kept intact.”

Even as new Celtics memories are made. The Celtics’ pursuit of the historic 18th championship banner, a feat that has eluded them for years, is now within reach. As of Thursday, the Cs have their opponent confirmed and the schedule set.

The Dallas Mavericks are the final hurdle, after they defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games. The opening clash between the two basketball powerhouses is scheduled for next week at the TD Bank Garden.

The newly crafted “Vault” exhibit has a unique design, complete with a bank motif and green lights and green velvet ropes. The vault cost $2 million to create, a project made possible through help from MassMutual.

As visitors walk through the exhibit, a story of a historic franchise unfolds.

A mural starts with the recent generation and nexus of the Celtics’ legacy, with all-star players such as Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to Larry Bird and Bill Russell. The walkway ends with Paul Pierce, Bob Cousy, and a quote from the late great Red Auerbach, all serving the glory and pride of what the Celtics embody.

John Doleva, president and CEO of the Basketball Hall Of Fame, offered a tease of what fans can expect from the newly added exhibit.

“These artifacts are from the climate-controlled and guarded places that still leave me in shock, thinking about the enormity and value of authenticity,” Doleva said.

A few memorable items on display that will incite conversation are clogs signed by Larry Bird from his time on Team USA during the 1992 Olympics, better remembered as the “Dream Team.”

Other points of interest are the 1981 MVP trophy on display and the corresponding Larry O’Brien trophy that kicked off the decade of dominance through the 1980s.

Other sections include a timeline from the franchise’s infancy, before the historic run, capped off with a monument crafted around the modern-day Celtic himself, Paul Pierce, better known as “The Truth,” which features his game-worn jerseys, and even a college variation and a signed basketball.

Zeysing said a key source of inspiration was his own childhood heroes and core memories.

“My hope is that each generation will take away a different feeling, because the generation was predicated on our childhood,” Zeysing said.

To the older generation, those driveway games had kids imagining themselves to be Larry Bird, John Havlicek, and Bob Cousy, he said.

Friday’s ceremony drew prominent state figures, including Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and Kate Fox, director of the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism.

The guest of honor was Celtic legend Cedric Maxwell, who cut the ribbon that opened the exhibit, now available to view.

Maxwell offered thoughts on the vault and what it meant to the franchise.

“To be here, in this building, and in this (vault), which is Celtic paraphernalia all around you is quite amazing,” he said. “I mean, from Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to Bob (Cousy), along with items from Bill Russell, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parrish (The Chief), and myself.”

“It truly is just a complete hodgepodge of great stuff,” he said.

The vault’s objects tether the past to the present.

“It’s extraordinary,” Maxwell said. “It’s the only word you can have when you think about the things around us. From the Russell jerseys, the Larry Bird clogs from Holland … even though I can confirm Bird never put his feet in them.”

Today, the C’s latest nucleus is led by Brown and Tatum. Maxwell said he talked to Tatum recently about the possibility of garnering championship gold and that coveted #18 banner.

“You know what, Max, I’m gonna get you another,” Tatum reportedly told Maxwell.

“I’m just happy that they’ll get the opportunity to play for the world championship,” he said of the current team.

General admission tickets to see the exhibit and more at the Hall of Fame can be purchased online at etix.com or at the door.