The NBA celebrated its 50th anniversary season in 1996-97. As part of the festivities, the Association announced its list of the “50 Greatest Players” which included 13 Celtics, featuring franchise stalwarts Bob Cousy, Bill Sharman, Sam Jones, Bill Russell, John Havlicek, Dave Cowens, Tiny Archibald, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. That season’s team […]

Everyone knows Larry Bird, Bill Russell, Bob Cousy and John Havlicek, but the players that signed this basketball were all major contributors to championship teams – and some were even inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Though their time in Boston may have been overshadowed by more well-known players, NBA World Championship […]

When Red Auerbach prepared to light up a cigar as the Celtics were close to victory, the sight didn’t thrill everyone, including some Celtics players. Bob Cousy recalled, “The fans would get more belligerent and hostile toward us, and we had to bust our tails to keep the lead because once he went for the […]

Perhaps trying to summon good vibes for the contemporary Celtics, the 1963 NBA World Championship team graced the cover of the 1995 playoff media guide. Though the modern-day Celtics tried channeling the likes of Bill Russell, Bob Cousy and John Havlicek, they fell to the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference First Round, 3-1. Boston […]

Ahead of the 2008 NBA World Championship parade, members of the Celtics put on shirts featuring caricatures of players and their autographs to wear while riding Boston’s famed duck boats. The players seemed to love the parade as much as the fans. Celtics legend Bob Cousy, who boarded a duck boat for the event, said […]

Talk about a Hall-of-Fame hat! More than a dozen Celtics legends, including Larry Bird, Bob Cousy, Bill Russell and Red Auerbach, put their signatures on a classic Celtics cap. With so many Hall-of-Famers, All-Stars and basketball icons in franchise history, we’re surprised it had enough room for all that star power.

Following superstar Bob Cousy’s departure, second-year man John Havlicek and veteran Tommy Heinsohn stepped up to guide the Celtics to their sixth straight NBA World Championship title in 1964. That season’s yearbook noted the first two jersey retirements in Celtics history, including Cousy (No. 14) and 1950s hero Ed Macauley (No. 22). The team also […]

After more than 50 years in service, the hallowed parquet floor at Boston Garden was retired just before Christmas 1999. The floor had moved with the team from Boston Arena (now Northeastern University’s Matthews Arena) to the old Garden to the brand-new FleetCenter. When the Celtics elected to replace the original parquet in 1999, the […]

When Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall-of-Famers are inducted at Springfield, they receive an orange jacket to symbolize their achievement. For Celtics fans, this off-the-rack jacket with its original tags might be more valuable. Ten members of the Hall of Fame signed the jacket along with seven more Celtics favorites from the 1950s, ’60s, ’70s and ’80s.

Members of the media received an Amtrack train pass as a ticket to New York City to watch the Boston Celtics take on the New York Knicks on January 11, 1997. The special date marked the 50th anniversary of the NBA, and the “Throwback Weekend” train ride had former Celtics like Bob Cousy and Bill […]