On that June 12 night in Los Angeles, the Celtics took a commanding 3-1 series lead with a 97-91 victory over the Lakers in what was one of the best comebacks and/or worst collapses in Finals history. The Celtics overcame a 24-point deficit, the largest comeback in the Finals in 27 years, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Now House is eager for a repeat after signing a two-year contract Monday.
"I'm enjoying every minute of being a champion," he said during a telephone interview from a promotional event in Phoenix. "When we get back, it will be time to refocus and retool. It's our goal to defend the title.
"I did want a chance to come back and repeat and I feel good about the deal they put together. Everyone is back, except for [Posey], and we feel we can do it again if we come in with the right mind-set. We have the right pieces. The big piece missing is Posey, but maybe we can get a couple guys to pick it up; maybe Tony Allen can do it."
House, 30, will remain in a backup role. But, as House and Posey showed in the Finals, that role can help determine a championship.
"Every game in the playoffs, from the first to the last, was the most important game of the season for us," House said. "Every step was the most important step we needed to take.
"[The Lakers] had a chance to tie it at 2 and it would have been a whole different ballgame going into Game 5. The pressure was on us, but that showed the character and the type of team we had. We never quit. We never did not believe we were the best team. We never thought we weren't going to get back in [Game 4]."
House inserted himself in the middle of the Celtics' rally. After trailing for nearly 44 minutes, the Celtics finally took the lead, 84-83, with 4:07 remaining. The go-ahead field goal? A jumper by House.
"We just wanted to get it under 10," House said of the Celtics' 58-40 halftime deficit. "Then we got it to 2, and from that point, we knew we had a great chance to do something real special.
"When we were out there [on the court], we were having fun and not thinking about anything else. I was just playing, giving all I had. It was an opportunity to leave everything on the court.
