Boston — Tommy Heinsohn passed away on Tuesday. He spent more than 60 years as a player, coach, and announcer with the Boston Celtics, being a part of the team for all 17 of its NBA titles. He was eighty-six.
The owners of the team released a statement saying, “This is a devastating loss.” Tommy was the epitome of a Celtic man. Our ownership group has benefited much from Tommy’s counsel and observations over the past eighteen years, and we have enjoyed hearing his countless tales about Red Auerbach, Bill Russell, and the Celtics’ ascent to dynasty status. He will live on in memory forever.”
“Celtics games will not be the same without Tommy, and he will be dearly missed by those who share his fervour for basketball,” Silver stated.
Heinsohn, a 1956 territorial selection pick by the Celtics, was a product of Holy Cross. He won rookie of the year that year, defeating teammate Russell, and finished with 39 points and 23 rebounds in Game 7 of the NBA Finals against the St. Louis Hawks.
It was the first title for the franchise and Heinsohn and Russell’s first of eight in nine years. In four of the championship seasons, Heinsohn was the team’s top scorer.
Together, we were novices and became lifelong friends. There aren’t many true friends in life, and I lost one today. Russell said on Twitter, “RIP Heiny.”
With 12,194 points and 5,749 rebounds, Heinsohn retired in 1965 but continued to work as a broadcaster for the club. In 1969, Auerbach, the patriarch of the Boston Celtics, selected him to replace Russell as coach.
When the squad won a then-record 68 games in 1973, Heinsohn was named NBA coach of the year. The Celtics won two more titles in 1974 and 1976. He became only the fourth person to be elected to both the coach and player halls of fame when he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1986.
In 1973, Heinsohn was named NBA coach of the year after the squad set a record with 68 wins. In 1974 and 1976, the Celtics won two more titles. He was the fourth individual to be chosen to both the coach and player halls of fame, having been honored as a player in 1986 and as a coach in 2015.
He returned to the team’s broadcasts shortly after retiring as a coach in 1979, and Celtics fans have always loved him for his unabashed homerism.
Leave a Reply