Tag: orlando bubble

Grant Williams opens up on his time in the Orlando bubble with Kemba Walker

Walker proved to be an exceptional teammate during the Celtics’ bubble run.

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Now a member of the Dallas Mavericks organization after being signed and traded there by the Boston Celtics as a restricted free agent this offseason, forward Grant Williams linked up with fellow NBA player Theo Pinson to talk about his time bunking with former Boston floor general Kemba Walker during the pandemic shutdown and playing with Boston in the Orlando bubble.

Walker proved an exceptional teammate during the Celtics’ bubble run, offering support and hospitality to his fellow players, particularly Williams, a native of Walker’s adopted home of Charlotte, North Carolina. The bubble experience lasted around three months, bringing the team closer together.

The Celtics faced challenges entering the bubble, having not played in months, but they remained focused on winning, and the camaraderie among players, including Gordon Hayward, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, intensified during the experience.

To hear more of Williams’ story on Pinson’s Tidal League “Run Your Race” podcast, check out the clip embedded above.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

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On this day: M.L. Carr signs; Fox, Boykoff, Eliason born; 1st Disney bubble scrimmage

On this day, M.L. Carr signed with the Celtics, and former Boston players Rick Fox, Harry Boykoff, and Don Eliason were born.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, small forward M.L. Carr joined the Celtics for the second time as a free agent in 1979. The first time Carr signed with Boston was in 1974, and he did not make the team, instead choosing to go overseas to play in Israel. When that stint ended, he would link up with the American Basketball Association’s (ABA) Spirit of St. Louis franchise.

After the ABA merged with the NBA and the Spirit of St. Louis did not make the cut, Carr would join the Detroit Pistons under Dick Vitale, and then the Celtics afterward.

“The whole country is looking for answers to the energy crisis; we found ours,” said Boston head coach Bill Fitch at the time (via the Washington Post’s Ron Rosen).

On this day: Raptors even 2020 Disney bubble East Semis vs. Boston

Lockdown perimeter defense helped the Raptors tie the series at 2.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, the Toronto Raptors evened their 2020 Eastern Conference semifinal with the Celtics at 2 with a 100-93 win.

The series played at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex, located in  Lake Buena Vista, Florida, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, began with Boston jumping to a two-game series lead before the Raptors came charging back.

Toronto forward Pascal Siakam put up 23 points and 11 boards in Game 4. Celtics small forward Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 24 points and 10 boards, and point guard Kemba Walker added 15 points and 8 assists. Forward Jaylen Brown logged another 14 points and 6 rebounds, but no other Celtic broke double figures in scoring.

On this day: Howell/Counts trade; Seminoff, Gomes born; Cs beat Raps in Game 2 of Disney bubble 2nd round

On this day, the Boston Celtics traded Bailey Howell for Mel Counts, former Celtics Jm Seminoff and Ryan Gomes were born, and the team beat the Raps in the bubble.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, the storied franchise traded for big man Bailey Howell, sending center Mel Counts to the (then) Baltimore Bullets (now, Washington Wizards). Counts, who played collegiately at Oregon State, was drafted by the Celtics with the seventh pick of the 1964 NBA draft. He won a title in each of his two seasons with Boston while averaging 6.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.

Howell had played for Mississippi State collegiately and had been drafted by the Detroit Pistons, playing there before his stint with the Bullets. The Tennessee native played four seasons as a Celtic, part of an eventual Hall of Fame career in the NBA.

He won two titles with Boston, logging 18 points and 8.4 boards per contest over his four seasons as a Celtic.

On this day: Robert Parish born; Boston wins Game 1 of second-round East series vs. Raptors in the Disney bubble

The Celtics took a one-game lead against the Raps in the bubble on this date in 2020, and Robert Parish was born in 1953.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, the storied franchise won its first game of the second round of the 2020 Eastern Conference playoffs against the Toronto Raptors, 112-94. Played in the so-called bubble at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex at Lake Buena Vista, Florida, as a result of the exigencies of conducting a postseason in the midst of a global pandemic, the Celtics took a 1-0 lead over the then-reigning champion Raptors.

They did it with the help of twin 21-point games from forward Jayson Tatum and guard Marcus Smart. Veteran floor general Kemba Walker chipped in 18 points and 10 assists.

Toronto trailed in the game from wire to wire.

On this day: Reggie Miller says no to joining Boston’s Banner 17 squad; Cs eliminate 76ers in Orlando bubble

On this day in 2007, legendary Indiana Pacers sharpshooter Reggie Miller declined an invite to join the roster that won Banner 17.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Indiana Pacers shooting guard legend Reggie Miller turned down Boston Celtics President Danny Ainge’s offer to join the 2007-08 Celtics as he sought to assemble a contender that summer.

Miller, a luminary known for his lethal outside shot, had been retired for two seasons after 18 campaigns with the Pacers. However, he gave the offer real consideration when he received the call from Ainge.

“I’m always flattered when my name is mentioned as someone who
can still help an NBA team win a championship,” offered the then-NBA analyst for TNT via ESPN’s JA Adande.

“(I have) contacted Reggie and he is contemplating a comeback
with us,” shared Ainge on the prospect of adding Miller to the juggernaut he assembled.

On this day: Ex-Boston big man Dave Popson signs: Cs win Game 1 of Disney bubble 1st round vs. 76ers

On this day in 1990, Dave Popson signed with the team as a free agent, and 30 years later won Game 1 vs. the 76ers in the bubble.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Boston big man Dave Popson signed with the team as an unrestricted free agent in 1990. The 6-foot-10 power forward played his collegiate ball with the University of North Carolina. He was drafted 88th (there were several more rounds to the draft in that era) in the 1987 NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons.

Popson played short stints with the Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat before joining the Celtics. He also had stints in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) and overseas playing for clubs based in France and Spain.

Popson played just 19 games for Boston, averaging 1.8 points per game with the team.

On this day: Boston keeps Memphis from clinching playoff spot in 2020 Orlando bubble

The Celtics were at that time finally seeming to find a rhythm as the win against the Grizzlies pushed their first win streak since play resumed to four games.

On this date in Boston Celtics history, the Celtics kept the Memphis Grizzlies from clinching a postseason berth with a 122-107 win in the so-called Orlando bubble teams played in after the NBA restarted play following a nearly four-month pause in play due to the viral malady that put much of the rest of the global economy on ice.

The Celtics were finally seeming to find a rhythm as the win against the Grizzlies extended their first win streak since play resumed to four games after a 1-2 start. They had the added benefit of forcing Memphis to have to wait for another win to secure a spot in the 2020 NBA playoffs.

“I feel like every game we play it’s the underdog,” said Ja Morant of the loss via the AP.

Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo texts Jayson Tatum every year on the anniversary of G1 block in Orlando bubble

The two friends still talk smack years after the flashbulb moment.

Who knows how the series between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat in the Orlando bubble might have gone had All-Star Celtics forward Jayson Tatum’s shot not been blocked by Miami big man Bam Adebayo, foiling Tatum’s attempt to tie the game.

Adebayo, for one, does not — but he also does not much seem to care about thinking about what could have happened had his timing been just a little bit off, because he makes a point of texting the St. Louis native — a friend off of the court — every year on the anniversary of the historic defensive play.

Adebayo recently had plenty of things to say about that snapshot of Celtics history unfortunately seared into our collective consciousness on a new episode of the JJ Redick-hosted “Old Man and the 3” podcast.

While we wait around for a potential rematch of that postseason showdown later on in the 2022 NBA playoffs, check out the clip embedded above to hear what Adebayo had to say about a moment plenty of Boston fans would prefer to forget.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Celtics icon Kevin Garnett opens up on Floyd protests, Allen feud in new NYT interview

The Big Ticket had some surprising takes on both.

Legendary Boston Celtics big man Kevin Garnett recently sat down with the New York Times’ Sopan Deb for a wide-ranging interview covering everything from KG’s attempt to buy the franchise where he started his NBA career — the Minnesota Timberwolves — to the status quo of his longtime feud with former Celtics teammate Ray Allen after the latter left Boston to join the Miami Heat in free agency in 2012.

It also touches on The Big Ticket’s views on the activism that spread like wildfire after the murder of George Floyd in the summer of 2020 that nearly put the brakes on the NBA’s post-pandemic hiatus restart.

You should read the interview in full, but here is a sampling of some of the more intriguing answers offered up by Garnett.