On this day in Boston Celtics history, future Celtics player, head coach, and general manager of the storied franchise Michael Leon “ML” Carr was born in Wallace, North Carolina back in 1951.
Carr, who is one of several former Celtics players to coach the team after having played for Boston (along with Tommy Heinsohn, Satch Sanders, Dave Cowens, Chris Ford, KC Jones, and Bill Russell), played his collegiate basketball with the Guilford Quakers, an NCAA Division III school. The North Carolina native got his start in pro ball in the American Basketball Association (ABA — a competing league that would merge with the NBA in 1978).
He played with the ABA’s Spirits of St. Louis before leaving the league to play for the NBA’s Detroit Pistons.