Tag: Reggie Lewis

Every Boston Celtics All-Star for each season the game was played

Every single Boston Celtics All-Star in franchise history.

The 2024 NBA All-Star Game is set to kick off in Indianapolis, Indiana. A pair of Boston Celtics will be part of the action for the third year in a row as Jayson Tatum plays as a starter and Jaylen Brown a reserve for the Eastern Conference All-Stars.

Tatum and Brown join a long list of Celtics stars who have participated in the event, now entering its 73rd year of existence, which actually got its start in the old Boston Garden. Initially created to improve the image of professional basketball after a point-shaving scandal in NCAA ball besmirched the sport in the eyes of the public, the event has taken on a life of its own as one of the league’s most anticipated events.

Let’s take a look at all the Celtics who have taken part.

On this day: Boston legends Reggie Lewis, Cedric Maxwell born

On this day, former Boston Celtics forwards Reggie Lewis and Cedric Maxwell were born.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, small forward Reggie Lewis was born back in 1965. Lewis would play his college ball at local Northeastern University under famed New England coaching legend Jim Calhoun and would be picked up with the 22nd overall selection in the 1987 NBA draft by the Celtics.

The former Husky had a solid rookie season, but an injury to star forward Larry Bird opened up an opportunity for Lewis to play a larger role with the team. The Maryland native took full advantage of it, scoring 18.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals per game, and just under a block per game that season.

It would be good for an All-Star bid in 1992, his sole such honor in his too-short career.

On this day: Lewis, Lohaus, Acres, Wenstrom, Jackson debut; Green signed; Turner cut; Kuberski born

On this day, former Celtics Reggie Lewis, Brad Lohaus, Mark Acres, and Matt Wenstrom made their debuts for Boston, and Steve Kuberski was born.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, forward Reggie Lewis debuted for the team in a 125-108 win over the Milwaukee Bucks in 1987. Born on the 21st of this month in Baltimore, Maryland, Lewis would play collegiately for Boston-area Northeastern University under New England coaching legend Jim Calhoun (better known for his time at UConn) before being drafted by Boston with the 22nd overall pick of the 1987 NBA draft.

He would later collapse and die of heart-related medical issues he’d been recently diagnosed with many years later but would play with Boston for six seasons, starting with this win over the Bucks.

The Maryland native would log 4 points in 5 minutes of game time in his debut.

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.

Who was the Celtics’ highest-paid player in each of the past 30 seasons?

Celtics Wire compiles the highest salary on Boston’s roster for each season since 1993-94.

The Boston Celtics rank among the most storied professional sports franchises in the world. With 17 NBA championships, the Celtics also have carved out a distinct place in the annals of basketball history.

Larry Bird, Robert Parish, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Jayson Tatum are some of the franchise’s most notable players in recent decades, and it’s intriguing to look back at the Celtics’ year-by-year salary history to see how those players were valued financially in their prime.

Below, we identify the highest-paid player on the Celtics roster for each season since 1990-91.

Every player in Boston Celtics history who wore No. 35

Today’s installment focuses on the six players who wore No. 35 over the years as of August 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 played in them, their unretired jersey numbers pack in 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. 35 over the years as of August 2023.

On this day: Reggie Lewis dies; Brown, Rozier, Green, Crowder signed

On this day, former Celtics forward Reggie Lewis died unexpectedly while working out due to a heart arrhythmia.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, rising franchise star Reggie Lewis would die unexpectedly after collapsing on a basketball court at Brandeis University while working out in the offseason in 1993.

Lewis, who had previously been diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat after another on-court collapse during the prior season, passed away after attempts by local police to resuscitate the Northeastern product were not successful. The 22nd overall pick of the 1987 NBA draft for the Celtics, Lewis was widely seen as a critical part of Boston’s future, and the bridge to a successful future after the Larry Bird – Kevin McHale – Robert Parish era.

Along with the loss of forward Len Bias in 1986, this was a major contributing cause to the team’s ‘wilderness era’ of mediocrity that would last more than a decade.

On this day: Reggie Lewis, Jayson Tatum, Semi Ojeleye, Brad Lohaus drafted

On this day, the Boston Celtics drafted Reggie Lewis, Jayson Tatum, Semi Ojeleye, and Brad Lohaus, and lost Brandon Hunter to the Charlotte Hornets.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, the team would select four players of note in the 2017 NBA draft, held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. While the Celtics had held the top overall pick in the draft, team president Danny Ainge would use it to trade back for the third overall pick, correctly gambling he could still get his targeted prospect, Jayson Tatum.

Tatum, a 6-foot-8 small forward out of Duke, was drafted third overall after Ainge completed the deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, who used the top overall pick on point guard Markelle Fultz out of Washington, the Los Angeles Lakers using the second overall pick on point guard Lonzo Ball.

Vindicating Ainge, Tatum has gone on to become one of the top ten players in the league, racking up accolades at a historic rate.

Dee Brown on the end of Larry Bird Era with the Boston Celtics, Reggie Lewis – Part 2

Along with his stories, Brown discusses the evolution of the game.

From his earliest influences to his time with the Boston Celtics, Dee Brown shares anecdotes and insights that weave the fabric of his basketball life in an interview with the host of the CLNS Media “Showtime” podcast, Los Angeles Lakers legend Michael Cooper.

Along with his stories, Brown discusses the evolution of the game, comparing the strategic and stylistic differences between the basketball of his time and the modern era. Brown’s perspective illuminates aspects of the sport, giving viewers a look into the world of professional basketball. Take a deep dive into the richness of NBA history and the intricacies of the professional game in this interview.

A must-watch for every basketball enthusiast who values the roots and evolution of the game, don’t miss this chance to gain a deeper appreciation of the sport we love in the clip embedded below.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

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

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=590969556]

WATCH: Reggie Lewis’ jersey retirement ceremony in the old Boston Garden

In memory of his passing, watch this video of Reggie Lewis’ posthumous jersey retirement.

In the offseason of 1993, rising Boston Celtics star small forward Reggie Lewis collapsed on a basketball court at Brandeis during offseason practice play and passed away after repeated attempts to revive the former Northeastern standout failed.

Seen by many fans as the heir apparent to Larry Bird and the bridge to a post-original “big three” era of Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale, the Celtics instead found themselves reeling from the loss of a franchise cornerstone player for the second time in less than a decade. In honor of Lewis’ life and contributions to the team, the franchise retired his No. 35 jersey to the rafters in 1995.

To honor his passing on the day of that jersey retirement, watch the ceremony in its entirety held in the old Boston Garden to a packed house with Celtics alumni who were teammates, legends, or both in attendance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vG5ZQoigqXg

Rest in Peace, Reggie.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

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

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=590969556]

[mm-video type=video id=01gty8wn8sam8tbjwk5e playlist_id=01eqbzegwgnrje4tv2 player_id=01f1jxkahtwnvzepyp image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gty8wn8sam8tbjwk5e/01gty8wn8sam8tbjwk5e-d09a6e88ec16dc61f8a7dc9b090ee917.jpg]