On this day in Boston Celtics history, shooting guard Jordan Crawford was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1988. Crawford played collegiately with the Indiana Hoosiers and the Xavier Musketeers, having been drafted 27th overall by the (then) New Jersey Nets (now, Brooklyn). He would not play for that club, however, his rights having been traded to the Atlanta Hawks later that summer.
Crawford would play with Atlanta and the Washington Wizards before he was traded to the Celtics for Leandro Barbosa and Jason Collins in February of 2013. He would begin his second season with the team as Boston’s starting point guard with Rajon Rondo out injured.
As a result, Crawford would start in 35 of the 39 games he played with the Celtics that season.
The Detroit native would be dealt in January of 2014 with MarShon Brooks to the Golden State Warriors in a three-team deal that would send Joel Anthony from the Miami Heat to Boston.
Crawford averaged 13.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per game as a Celtic.
It is also the birthday of former Boston big man Kevinn Pinkney, who briefly played for Boston in the 2006-07 season after an injury-depleted roster was granted an exemption to add a 16th player.
The University of Nevada alum would play just six games for the Celtics on a pair of 10-day contracts before leaving to play overseas that summer. He averaged 5.2 points and 2.5 boards per game with Boston.
Happy birthday to the real coach of the 1967 Boston Celtics! Happy birthday Ron Watts! #Celtics
— Honest☘️Larry (@HonestLarry1) May 21, 2021
Today is also the date of Celtics forward Ron Watts’ debut with the team, which came in a 120-110 loss to the (then) St. Louis (now, Atlanta) Hawks in 1965.
The Wake Forest alum had a modest debut, logging 2 points, a board, and an assist in 3 minutes of game time.
A pair of Celtics debuted on this date in 2019, Grant Williams and Carsen Edwards. Playing their first minutes for Boston in a 107-93 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Williams had a bit of a rough debut, pulling down a single rebound in 7 minutes of play, while Edwards recorded 3 points and a board in 11 and a half minutes of floor time.
That game was also the first in the pandemic-interrupted season of 2019-20, though that is a story for another day.
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