On this day: Red passes; KC Jones coach, Hudson, Rozier, Mickey, R. Morgan, Cook player debuts; Nelson signed

On this day, legendary Boston Celtics team president and coach Red Auerbach passed away in 2006.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, legendary Celtics team president and coach Arnold “Red” Auerbach passed away at the age of 89 in 2006. Auerbach assembled a career in basketball unparalleled in its time and to this day, winning nine titles with the team as a coach, and seven more as an executive.

He joined the franchise in 1950 after stints coaching the Washington Capitols (now defunct) in the Basketball Association of America (BAA – a precursor league to the NBA) and at the NCAA level as an assistant coach with the Duke Blue Devils before joining the Celtics.

Red — as he was often called — transformed the game with his emphasis on the fast break and team-focused play reliant on ball movement at all positions.

Who are the Boston Celtics’ top-10 all-time leaders in postseason wins?

Can you name all the Celtics who led Boston to the most playoff wins? Better yet, can you do it in order?

Begrudgingly tied with their longtime rivals, the Los Angeles Lakers, with the most NBA titles in league history at 17 each, few teams can rival the Boston Celtics in terms of total playoff games won by their players.

Spanning most of the years in the seven decades of existence all the way back to the Basketball Association of America (BAA — a precursor league to the NBA) era, there has been a Celtics roster playing in the postseason more often than not. But who are the stars and role players who got Boston there and played the games that led to all those banners?

Make your guesses, and scroll down to see how you did.

Complete list of Boston Celtics in the Basketball Hall of Fame

Celtics Wire celebrates the 48 members of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame with ties to the Boston Celtics franchise.

The Boston Celtics are one of the bedrock franchises in professional sports. Legends such as Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, Tommy Heinsohn, Larry Bird, Robert Parish, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett dazzled fans with their athletic exploits and won the NBA championship in Boston.

A couple of hours down the Mass Pike in Springfield, no fewer than four dozen players, coaches, and contributors with ties to the Celtics franchise have been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame over the years, spanning the decades from the first years of the storied ball club’s existence up to the team’s last era of contention.

Below, Celtics Wire celebrates the 49 members of the Hall of Fame with Celtics connections in a photo gallery.

Who are the Boston Celtics’ top-10 all-time leaders in playoff games played?

Can you name the top 10 players in franchise history in terms of games played in the postseason? Better yet, can you name their order?

With 17 titles to their name and over seven decades of history, it is inevitable that the Boston Celtics are among the most heavily represented teams in games played in the history of the NBA playoffs.

But who are the players who have played the most games for this storied franchise? Those 17 titles were won with the blood and sweat of an elite cadre of Celtics who spent more time than any others on the court to make those banners more than just a goal. The answers might surprise you, even if you consider yourself a keen follower of Celtics history — and how close some are to each other is another revelation.

Can you name the top 10 players in franchise history in terms of games played in the postseason? Scroll down, and see how you did.

The Boston Celtics have retired 24 jersey numbers – these are the players so honored

It’s no coincidence this team has the most retired jersey numbers with 17 banners hanging alongside them as of Oct. 2023.

There are no teams in the history of the NBA to have more titles than the Boston Celtics — at least not yet — so it makes sense there are no other franchises with more retired numbers to honor the players over the decades who earned and hung those banners.

In fact, there are no teams in any sport with more retired jersey numbers at 24 overall, a reflection of the excellence behind the Celtics mystique built by franchise architect Red Auerbach. From his signing with the team as coach and general manager onward, Boston became one of the premier teams of the greatest basketball league on the planet.

But who were the players for which those jerseys were retired? Let’s take a look at them all as of Oct. 2022.

Every player in Boston Celtics history who wore No. 19

Today’s installment focuses on the six players who wore No. 19 over the years as of September 2023.

The Boston Celtics have more retired jerseys than any other team in the NBA, but that doesn’t mean the rest of their jerseys have little history of interest tied to them.

In fact, with 17 titles to their name and decades of competitive basketball, their unretired jersey numbers pack some of the most history not hanging from the rafters of any team in the league. To that end, we have launched our accounting of that history with every player in every jersey worn by more than one Celtics player in the storied franchise’s history accounted for.

Today’s installment focuses on the six players who wore No. 19 over the years as of September 2023.

Which Boston Celtics have played in the most Game 7s in the postseason?

The storied ball club has a number of their former players on any list of NBA greats who have played in the most Game 7s.

When talking about playing in Game 7s in the history of the  NBA playoffs, fans of the Boston Celtics will not be too surprised to learn the storied club has a number of their former players on any list of NBA greats who have played in the most Game 7s over the course of their careers.

But when you take into account the dominance of the Celtics from the 1950s to the precipice of the 1970s with long stretches of contention in the mid-seventies, the eighties and late aughts, it makes sense that such lists are littered with former Boston players.

Let’s take a look at the record books to find out.

Who has played the most playoff games in Boston Celtics history?

Can you guess who that might be, as well as the others of the top ten players in terms of postseason play in the history of Boston’s playoff action?

When talking about getting onto the court in the NBA playoffs, fans of the Boston Celtics might be surprised to learn that despite his fame as one of the winningest competitors in any sport, Hall of Fame Boston big man Bill Russell does not hold the record for the most playoff games played over the course of his storied career with the ball club.

In fact, that record belongs to another Boston player who took the court alongside Russell for several seasons. Can you guess who that might be, as well as the others of the top ten players in terms of postseason play in the history of Boston’s playoff action?

Let’s take a look at the record books to find out.

On this day: Celts win vs CLE in ’17 ECF, PHI in ’12 ECF; Watts born

On this day, the Boston Celtics beat both the Cavs and 76ers in East Finals series, and former Celtic forward Ron Watts was born.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Celtics small forward Ron Watts was born in 1943 in the U.S. capital, Washington, D.C. Watts would play his college ball with the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, and be drafted by the Celtics with the 17th overall pick of the 1965 NBA draft.

The Washington native would go on to play for two seasons with Boston, though in only 29 games total and just one during the entirety of his rookie season. He would win a championship with the team in 1966 and would log a career 1.4 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 0.1 assists per game with the team.

He would leave the Celtics after being drafted by the Seattle Supersonics in the 1967 NBA expansion draft.

On this day: Wiz bested in ’18 East semis; Bing inducted; Nelson, Vaughn born

On this day, the Boston Celtics sent the Washington Wizards fishing in the ’18 East Semis, and guard Dave Bing was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Celtics point guard Dave Bing was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield Massachusetts in 1990 along with iconic big man Elvin Hayes, legendary Philadelphia Warriors center Neil Johnston, and famed guard Earl “The Pearl” Monroe.

After spending the bulk of his career with the Detroit Pistons — a city he would one day become the mayor of — the Washington, D.C. native would play two seasons with his hometown Washington Bullets before signing with the Celtics as a free agent in the final season of his storied career.

He joined Boston for its 1977-78 campaign and scored 13.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game before retiring from the NBA at the end of the season.