By BILL REYNOLDS, The Providence Journal

He lives in the curious intersection of superstardom and celebrity, a life played out on the pages of the New York tabloids, the embodiment of the American superstar. From strippers to Madonna, from the public destruction of his marriage to being one of the centerpieces in baseball's steroids mess, he long ago transcended being just a mere baseball player.

This has become the young season of David Ortiz's discontent, in which he seems to have aged before our eyes, this likeable man who just a couple of years ago was one of the greatest clutch hitters in Boston Red Sox history.

Okay, let' step back for a minute.
Let's think globally, not locally, as so many of the politicos like to say.
Let's take a broad look at the NBA, and realize that the finals the NBA would love to see is not the Celtics and the Lakers, which is so last year.
It's the Cavaliers and the Lakers.
It's LeBron and Kobe.

How did Manny become Manny?
How did the phrase "Manny being Manny" evolve?
These are the two questions that have been hovering over Manny Ramirez for years now, two questions that sometimes can be as perplexing as the secrets of the universe.
Now we know the answers.
Or at least some of them.

Last year, it was the Big Three.
They were the ones that carried the Boston Celtics to their first world championship in 22 years. They were the focal point, the three glamour players who were this generation's version of Bird, McHale and Parish. They not only changed the culture of the Celtics, but they brought the Celtics back in our hearts and minds.

At 23-2, the Boston Celtics are off to the start in their rich and storied history.
Here are two examples why:
-- Toronto at Boston on Dec. 10.
It was billed as an early-season showdown, a good, young team in the East coming into Boston to make a statement. One of those games where the Raptors were going to show the Celtics that this was a new year, a new script.

The New York Yankees reportedly have reached a $161-million deal with pitcher CC Sabathia.
The Red Sox reportedly have first baseman Mark Teixeira in their sights for roughly $20 million a year.
The Mets and closer Francisco Rodriguez have agreed on $37 million for three years.

It's now Halloween, in the middle of the NFL season, and the New England Patriots are 5-2. Sometimes the best coaching jobs have nothing to do with how many games you win. For who would have believed they now would now be 5-2, very much in the AFC race, back in the third week of the season?

WALTHAM, Mass. -- Last spring the Boston Celtics won their first NBA title in 22 years. Now comes the hard part. Now they want to repeat. "We want to be remembered as one of the great Celtics' teams," said Paul Pierce. "We want to be talked about when our careers are long gone." Pierce knows. He finally gets it.