ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF
The Boston Celtics announced Thursday night that legend and Hall of Famer John Havlicek has died at the age of 79.
The Legend that is Havlicek
The Celtics drafted Havlicek with the seventh pick of the 1962 NBA Draft and his presence was immediately felt.
Havlicek played 16 NBA seasons, all with the Boston Celtics, winning eight championships over his career. Only his teammates Bill Russell (11) and Sam Jones (10) have more throughout NBA history.
Havlicek passed away from his fight with Parkinson’s Disease.
He is a 13-time All-Star and was an All-NBA selection 11 times. He was also the 1974 NBA Finals MVP. Havlicek paved the way for what is meant to be a ‘Three and D’ type player. He was an effective scorer throughout his career, averaging as much as 28.9 points one season, and was named to an All-Defensive team eight times.
Check out Havlicek’s historic steal that would seal the 1965 Eastern Conference Finals for the Celtics. The win would put Boston in position to win their seventh of eight straight finals.
John Havlicek is the #Celtics all-time leader in points, FG made, games played, minutes played & playoff games played.
2nd in assists, 4th in rebounds, 2nd in free throws made
Played without 3-pointers.
Played 71 games or more in all 16 years of his career.
And he stole the ball. pic.twitter.com/ZnnKsGu5ZI— NESN (@NESN) April 26, 2019
Remembering Havlicek
The Boston legend will be missed by the sports world. Havlicek will be remembered for the teammate he was and his ability to always make a big play when the team needed him most.
It is getting difficult each time I hear about another contemporary that passes! What is harder is when we lose guys like John Havlicek, he was not just a teammate & a great guy, but he was family. That is how our @celtics teams were. #RIP Hondo @NBA #RIPJohnHavlicek @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/VP9MGPjrmZ
— TheBillRussell (@RealBillRussell) April 26, 2019
Havlicek will also be remembered due in part to how good the Celtics were during his time of play. It wasn’t only that they won so many championships, but how tightly wound the group was.
He still remains the franchise leader in games played and fourth in NBA history in points for a player who spends his entire career with one franchise.
To honor the legend, the Celtics will wear a black stripe on their jerseys with the No. 17 on it. In addition, the team will wear a special Havlicek themed shooting shirt for their series against the Milwaukee Bucks.
As we get closer to the end of the NBA season it’s important to note that these greats are also people who impacted lives. Rest in peace to a true basketball legend.
