On this day: Stevens, Olynyk, Pressey, Johnson, Langford debut; Rondo 24 asts

On this day, Boston coach Brad Stevens and Celtics Joe Johnson, Kelly Olynyk, Phil Pressey, Jared Sullinger, and Romeo Langford debuted for the team, while Rajon Rondo dropped 24 assists.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, former Celtics head coach and current Boston President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens coached his first regular-season game in that role after being hired away from the Butler Bulldogs earlier in the year to head to the Celtics to accept his first NBA job.

The tilt was unfortunately a loss to the Toronto Raptors to start the Stevens era with the franchise, though at least a close one to the tune of 93-87. Stevens’ best performing players were forward Jeff Green with 25 points and 5 rebounds, and big man Brandon Bass with 17 points.

The game wasn’t just Stevens’ first with the Celtics.

On this day: Cowens, Langford born; Ford cut; Green, Swain, Jones debut; Sharman passes

On this day in Celtics history, Dave Cowens and Romeo Langford were born, Chris Ford was cut, a number of players made their debut and Bill Sharman left us.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, in Newport, Kentucky, Celtics champion center Dave Cowens was born in 1948. Cowens played collegiately with the Florida State Seminoles and would be taken by the Celtics fourth overall in the 1970 NBA draft on the advice of big man legend Bill Russell despite the fact that the Florida State product stood only 6-foot-9.

It didn’t matter much that he was undersized, as he averaged 17 points and 15 rebounds a game in his rookie season, earning All-Rookie First Team honors in the process. It’s a good thing the Celtics took Russell’s endorsement to heart.

Cowens would go on to have a Hall of Fame career with the team, proving Russell right and then some.

Former Boston Celtics lottery pick waived by Danny Ainge

The former Boston Celtics lottery pick is now an unrestricted free agent after being waived by the Utah Jazz.

The Utah Jazz has waived Romeo Langford. The former Boston Celtics lottery pick was training with Danny Ainge‘s team after being released by the San Antonio Spurs. Langford failed to earn a spot on the rebuilding Jazz’s roster. The former Hoosier has struggled since entering the NBA.

Langford was drafted with the 14th overall pick in 2019 but has struggled with injury throughout his time in the league. When healthy, Langford has seldom shown the talent that saw him named “Indiana Mr. Basketball” in 2018. Despite his struggles, there have been moments where Langford has shown flashes of figuring things out, primarily on the defensive side of the floor.

Langford left the Celtics as part of the deal that saw Boston acquire Derrick White. While the deal worked perfectly for Brad Stevens, Langford will now wonder where his next opportunity will come from.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cyg-FqyoXLY/

Most teams have finalized their preparations at such a late juncture in the off-season. Langford could find himself signing with a G-League roster or being on the free-agent market for the foreseeable future.

In his two-and-a-half years with the Celtics, Langford participated in 98 regular-season games, averaging 3.6 points and 1.9 rebounds per contest. Last season, Langford played in 43 games for the Spurs, starting 21. He averaged 6.9 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.2 assists.

At 23-years-old (almost 24,) the former Indiana standout will be hoping another NBA team takes a flyer on his potential upside. He may need to prove his injury struggles are behind him, though.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

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

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

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

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Every player in Boston Celtics history who wore No. 9

Today’s installment focuses on the 15 players who wore No. 9 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 played in them, 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 15 players who wore No. 9 over the years as of September 2023.

Former Celtic first-rounder Romeo Langford set to reunite with Danny Ainge in Utah

Romeo Langford is reportedly signing an Exhibit-10 deal with the Utah Jazz.

Former Boston Celtic and first-round draft pick Romeo Langford is signing an Exhibit 10 contract with the Utah Jazz, according to the Athletic’s Tony Jones. These are non-guaranteed training camp deals that can be converted to a regular or two way contract for one year of service or can pay out between $5,000 and $50,000 if the player is cut before the start of the season.

Langford was the Gatorade Player of the Year during his lone season at Indiana in 2018 but has yet to find his footing in the NBA. At 6-foot-5, Langford is an athletic wing who could become a reliable reserve as a pro if he can become a little more consistent. Langford spent last season with the San Antonio Spurs, logging 21 starts and averaging 6.9 points per game.

When the Celtics drafted Langford with the No. 14 pick in 2019, Danny Ainge was still calling the shots in Boston’s front office. Ainge is now serving as the CEO of basketball operations for the Utah Jazz. Perhaps Ainge believes Langford can help bolster Utah’s depth chart.

Every player in Boston Celtics history who wore No. 45

This is every player in Boston’s history who wore the Celtics’ No. 45 jersey for at least one game as of Aug. 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 dozen players who wore No. 45 over the years as of Aug. 2023.

On this day: Celtics draft Langford, Williams, Edwards, Waters; Melo, Milicic, Rogers born

On this day in 2019, the Boston Celtics drafted Romeo Langford, Grant Williams, Carsen Edwards, and Tremont Waters.

On this day in Boston Celtics history, the storied franchise drafted four players of note in the 2019 NBA draft. With the 51st pick, the Celtics selected 5-foot-10 point guard Tremont Waters out of Louisiana State University, who would later sign with the team as a two way player who spent most of his rookie season with the Maine Red Claws — the Celtics’ G League developmental affiliate.

There, he would earn G League Rookie of the Year honors while averaging 18 points, 3.2 rebounds, 7.3 assists, and 2 steals per game while shooting 7.1 3-pointers per game with 35.4 % accuracy in his inaugural season.

He was with the team for two seasons (all as a two way player), with a career average of 3.8 points and 2.1 assists per game at the NBA level.

Five Boston Celtics alumni on the move in 2019 NBA redraft

Five Celtics alumni ended up seeing their draft stock shift considerably with the benefit of hindsight lifting their fortunes.

With Hoops Hype’s Frank Urbina and Raul Barrigon busy reassessing the draft orders of the last several decades over the last few years, there are always a number of Boston Celtics alumni on the move in their re-drafts as a result.

In the H/H duo’s reassessment of the NBA’s 2019 draft class, a total of five Celtics alumni ended up seeing their draft stock shift considerably with the benefit of hindsight lifting their fortunes. And while they won’t see any pay raises or anything else of that sort given the fictitious nature of such an exercise, it’s also nice to see this duo get their flowers, too.

Let’s take a look at which Boston alumni landed where.

Former Boston Celtic Romeo Langford gets career-high 23 points with San Antonio Spurs vs. New York Knicks

Recently, the Indiana native put up a career-high 23 points along with 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals in just over 28 minutes of game time.

The Boston Celtics’ 14th overall selection of the 2019 NBA draft, Romeo Langford, has been doing well with his new team, the San Antonio Spurs. He was dealt there in 2022 as part of the package of players and assets that brought veteran guard Derrick White to the Celtics.

The Indiana native put up a career-high 23 points along with 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals in just over 28 minutes of action against the New York Knicks in the last week of December, his latest big outing in a season marked by several.

Langford managed that stat line efficiently, shooting a sizzling 11-of-16 from the floor, including 1-of-1 from beyond the arc, with one personal foul and one turnover.

To see Langford’s career night with San Antonio, check out the highlight clip put together by the folks at the Bllen YouTube channel.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

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

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

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

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Spurs coach Gregg Popovich on former Celtic Romeo Langford’s recent growth in San Antonio

“He’s been doing very well,” suggested the Spurs head coach.

Former Boston Celtics shooting guard Romeo Langford has been having a bit of a breakout with his new team, and the Celtics Wire caught up with his new coach, Gregg Popovich, at the 2022 NBA Mexico City games this past weekend. Langford, who has been putting up 10 points, 4.2 points and 1.2 assists per contest over the Spurs’ last six games, has begun to find his way on the court with San Antonio, per Popovich.

“He’s been doing very well,” suggested the Spurs head coach. “We brought him in (as part of the trade that sent Derrick White to Boston), and we didn’t really know much about him, only that he was injured quite a bit.”

“Injuries just kept him back,” added Popovich. “He’s a young man on a young team, one of our better defenders, probably one of our top three defenders.”

“He’s trying to find a niche on the team,” said the San Antonio coach. “He’ll carve out an NBA career for himself, so he’s done a good job.”

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

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

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

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

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