d f f i h h Glory Days D uring the 1920s and 1930s the sport of professional l basketball struggled to attract loyal fans High school and college games were much more popular However in the years after World War II the pro game started to make headlines across the United States A new league called the Basketball Association of America BAA formed in 1946 It later merged with the National Basketball League to form the NBA One of the new league’s driving forces was Walter Brown He owned the BAA’s club in Boston which he named the Celtics After struggling for a few years the Celtics became a winning team during the 1950 51 season Three new faces made the difference coach Red Auerbach guard Bob Cousy and center Ed Macauley Auerbach came to Boston with the belief that a fast-paced offense could win championships At the time there was no shot clock in the NBA 6
Most teams held the ball for a long time waiting for an easy scoring chance With Macauley grabbing rebounds and throwing long passes to Cousy the Celtics were able to beat opponents down the court for quick baskets In 1956 the Celtics traded for a young center named Bill Russell He was a ferocious defensive player and a great rebounder perfect for Auerbach’s system With Russell shutting down opponents on defense and Cousy leading the charge on offense Boston was practically unstoppable Russell and Cousy made up the heart of a club that included other fine players such as Bill Sharman Frank Ramsey Tom Heinsohn and Jim Loscutoff Boston won the NBA championship in 1956 57 lost in the NBA Finals in 1957 58 and then went on an amazing streak From 1958 59 to 1968 69 the Celtics were NBA champions 10 times Auerbach was a genius when it came to fitting new players into his system As veterans retired they were replaced by talented stars that LEFT Bob Cousy led Boston’s fast-paced offense ABOVE Bill Russell soars above the rim on the cover this NBA guide 7
included Sam Jones K C Jones Bailey Howell Don Nelson Satch Sanders and John Havlicek Most years it seemed as if the Celtics barely broke a sweat on their way to the championship During the 1970s a new generation of Celtics took over Havlicek and Nelson were now the leaders of a group that included center Dave Cowens guard Jo Jo White and forward Paul Silas The Celtics played for the Eastern Conference championship six years in a row and advanced to the NBA Finals twice in 1974 and 1976 Boston won the title both years The Celtics continued to play championship basketball in the 1980s The team reached the NBA Finals five times and won three league titles Boston’s star player was a smart and talented forward named Larry Bird Time and again he made the winning play for the Celtics Bird’s teammates included Kevin McHale and Robert Parish They played their best when they were close to the LEFT Larry Bird was at his best with the game on the line ABOVE Dave Cowens led Boston to a pair of NBA titles in the 1970s 9
