On this day in Boston Celtics history, the storied franchise hired their last head coach Brad Stevens away from Butler University, his job as head coach for the previous six years. Stevens had led Butler to consecutive NCAA national title games against Duke and UConn before joining the Celtics and never won less than 22 games a season while with that collegiate team.
The Zionsville, Indiana native has since coached the Celtics for eight seasons after inking an initial six-year, $22 million contract; Stevens was extended in 2016 for an undisclosed term and salary. He would win Eastern Conference Coach of the Month three times in that span and the Eastern Conference Finals with Boston as many times as well.
Before becoming the team’s latest team president at the end of the 2020-21 NBA season, he would amass a 354-282 regular season and 38-40 postseason coaching record, good for .557 and .487 winning percentages respectively.
It is also the birthday of former Boston point guard Marlon Garnett, born this day in 1975 in Los Angeles, California.
And before you ask — no, he is not related to Hall of Fame Celtics big man Kevin Garnett.
A product of Santa Clara, Garnett was undrafted in the 1997 NBA draft and signed with the Celtics as a free agent.
He would play 24 games for the team in the 1998-99 NBA season, averaging 2.1 points per game over that stretch.
Happy birthday in heaven Dick Dickey.
His claim to fame? When NC State beat Bob Cousy’s Holy Cross in the NCAA quarterfinals, Dickey cut down the net, an Indiana high school basketball tradition that he is credited with introducing to the college game. #Celtics pic.twitter.com/V2UuEf94wu— Honest☘️Larry (@HonestLarry1) October 26, 2021
Finally, it is also the day that Boston point guard Dick Dickey left us in 2006. A product of NC State, the Grand County, Indiana native was born in 1926 and played 45 games for the Celtics in the 1951-52 season.
Dickey averaged 2.8 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.1 assists over that stretch, but is far better known for a tradition he started while playing for NC State ahead of the 1950 NCAA Tournament’s Final Four.
The Indiana native cut down the nets after his Wolfpack won their Elite Eight matchup (the term had yet to be coined, of course), sparking a tradition that remains with us today — rest in peace.
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