Tag: 2008 Eastern Conference semifinals

On this day: Jimmy Rodgers fired; Kemba Walker, Keyon Dooling born

On this day, former Boston Celtics head coach Jimmy Rodgers was fired, and Celtics guards Kemba Walker and Keyon Dooling were born.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Head Coach Jimmy Rodgers was fired in that role after unexpectedly dropping a first-round matchup with the New York Knicks in the 1990 NBA Playoffs. Rodgers had joined the Celtics as an assistant coach under Bill Fitch in 1979. He would stay on with the organization after Fitch was let go as head coach in 1983, working under Celtics legend KC Jones, then replacing Jones as head coach upon his resignation in 1988.

Rodgers was dealt a rough hand in his first season, with star forward Larry Bird out injured for much of the season. While the first-round exit and poor records are perhaps not up to par for the Celtics teams of old, the franchise inherited by Rodgers was heavily mortgaged in favor of an aging core that probably should have been broken up years earlier.

Rodgers finished with a 94-70 regular-season record, and went 2 and 6 in the postseason, good for .573 and .250 winning percentages, respectively.

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On this day: Cs whiff ’97 lottery, miss Duncan; send LBJ home in ’08 with 41 from Pierce

On this day in 1997, the Boston Celtics missed the top pick of that year’s draft and with it Tim Duncan; 11 years later, they sent LBJ home in the ’08 East semis.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, the team would flop in that year’s draft lottery, ending up losing the top overall pick to the San Antonio Spurs despite having the highest odds — 36.3% — of landing the first overall pick of the 1997 NBA draft.

The whiff was one of the more impactful bits of bad draft luck experienced by the team in its worst era in terms of success in club history. The unlucky turn would end up sending generational big man talent Tim Duncan to the Spurs, with Boston drafting Chauncey Billups and Ron Mercer with the third and sixth picks of that draft, respectively.

“I can tell you this,” said then-general manager M.L. Carr via the Boston Globe’s Michael Holley. “Coach (Rick) Pitino will do the right thing with the picks. He knows what he’s doing, he knows college basketball.”

The problem was that the Celtics played in the NBA.

On this day: Celtics win ’81 championship vs. Rockets; Braun signed

On this day, the Boston Celtics won their 14th championship, beating the Houston Rockets in Game 6 of the 1981 NBA Finals.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, the 62-20 Boston Celtics won their 14th NBA Championship with a 102-91 Game 6 triumph over the Houston Rockets in 1981 on their home floor despite going five minutes late in the game without a basket.

Forward Larry Bird led the Celtics with 27 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 assists, and forward Cedric Maxwell chipped in 19 points, 5 boards, and 6 assists. center Robert Parish added 18 points and 6 rebounds. Shooting guard Robert Reed scored 27 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists for Houston, and legendary big man Moses Malone added 23 points and 16 boards.

Maxwell was awarded Finals MVP for his performance against the Rockets, who, at 42-40, were the last team in league history to make the NBA Finals with a losing record.

On this day: Jimmy Rodgers fired; Kemba Walker, Keyon Dooling born

On this day, former Boston Celtics head coach Jimmy Rodgers was fired, and Celtics guards Kemba Walker and Keyon Dooling were born.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Head Coach Jimmy Rodgers was fired in that role after unexpectedly dropping a first-round matchup with the New York Knicks in the 1990 NBA Playoffs. Rodgers had joined the Celtics as an assistant coach under Bill Fitch in 1979 and stayed on with the organization after Fitch was let go as head coach in 1983, working under Celtics legend KC Jones, then replacing Jones as head coach upon his resignation in 1988.

Rodgers was dealt a rough hand in his first season with star forward Larry Bird out injured for much of the season. While the first-round exit and poor records are perhaps not up to par for the Celtics teams of old, the franchise inherited by Rodgers was heavily mortgaged in favor of an aging core that probably should have been broken up years earlier.

Rodgers finished with a 94-70 regular-season record, and went 2 and 6 in the postseason, good for .573 and .250 winning percentages, respectively.