Re: Globe: Heinsohn Profile

[Dan Forant <dforant1@nycap.rr.com>]

My favorite Celtic besides Red is Heinsohn. Without a doubt he has carried
the banner of team spirit higher then any other Celtic except Red. I saw
many of his games as a player and coach and always gave more than his all.
When he coached he would come in looking dapper and go out looking like he
did a strip tease because of his intensity. I know many think he's over
bearing but I like it. Not being as articulate as others he get's his point
across in his own humorous way. Nice artist also. He's the type of guy
you'd want in your family. One of the reasons I stuck with the Celts
through the lean years is because of his optimism.

At 11:45 AM 11/17/99 +0100, you wrote:
>NEW ENGLAND'S TOP 100
>Court was Heinsohn's canvas
>
>By Judy Van Handle, Globe Staff, 11/17/99
>
>He has filled so many roles in a four-decade link with the Celtics -
>high-scoring forward, coach, longtime broadcaster - that he has become
>one of their most ubiquitous figures, but it's also easy to picture Tom
>Heinsohn as their Renaissance Man.
>
>For although Heinsohn played on eight championship teams in nine years,
>coached the Celtics to two more titles, and gained fame as a
>broadcaster, he also has achieved recognition in a very different venue
>as an accomplished artist. Every picture tells a story in Heinsohn's
>life in basketball, which began nearly a half-century ago as one of
>Massachusetts's best collegiate players and continues today  as a
>Celtics announcer.
>Heinsohn, whose No. 15 hangs from the FleetCenter rafters and was
>inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame in 1986, is the Globe's choice
>as No. 45 on its list of top 100 New England sports figures of the 20th
>century.
>
>Heinsohn left Union City, N.J., for Worcester in the fall of 1952 and
>became one of the best players in Holy Cross history. The 6-foot-7-inch
>forward, a consensus All-American his senior year, once torched Boston
>College for 51 points at the Garden and was the sophomore force behind
>the Crusaders' 1954 National Invitation Tournament championship team.
>
>Red Auerbach snatched up Heinsohn in the first round of the now-defunct
>territorial draft in 1956, and the flat-topped forward with the
>stitched-up knee wrap immediately impressed with his shooting eye, grit,
>intensity, and play in the clutch.
>
>He joined a team studded with stars such as Bob Cousy, Bill Sharman, and
>another rookie, Bill Russell, but it was Heinsohn who guaranteed the
>Celtics their first title in 1957 with 37 points and 21 rebounds in Game
>7 of the finals against St. Louis.
>
>With a 16.3 points-per-game average, Heinsohn earned Rookie of the Year
>accolades along with nicknames like ''Tommy Gun'' and ''Ack-Ack.'' He
>was known not only for his trademark soft hook and line-drive jumper but
>also for his love of shooting, often thrusting his hand into the air and
>calling for the ball. Heinsohn, a five-time All-Star, averaged 20 points
>or better three times, winding up with an 18.6 average, but his
>reputation as a shooter first wasn't entirely accurate.
>
>''You never heard Heinsohn mention how many points he scored after a
>game,'' said Auerbach. ''And he never seemed to mind playing in the
>shadow of Russell or Bob Cousy.''
>
>Upon his retirement after the 1964-65 season at the age of 30, the
>garrulous Heinsohn served as a Celtics broadcaster for four years before
>being named coach in 1969. He became known for his demonstrative actions
>as one of the NBA's most excitable coaches. Heinsohn led the Celtics to
>championships in 1974 and 1976 and notched 427 victories before being
>fired midway through the 1977-78 season.
>
>Heinsohn rejoined the Celtics' broadcast team in the early '80s, doing
>double duty for seven years as a top analyst for CBS. He remains a color
>commentator on Fox, his 17th season at the mike.
>
>