On this day in Boston Celtics history, Celtics small forward and later head coach and general manager Michael Leon Carr (more often known as “M.L.”) was waived by the team he would one day head — but not on that day in 1974.
Carr, a native of Wallace, North Carolina, would play his college ball with the Guilford College Quakers, a Division III program in Greensboro, North Carolina. Despite the Division III status of his school, Carr managed to get selected 76th overall (there were several more rounds to the NBA draft in that era) by the then-Kansas City/Omaha Kings (now, Sacramento) in the 1973 NBA draft.
But, Carr fared better in the rival American Basketball Association (ABA) draft of that same year.
Carr instead chose to sign with the Kentucky Colonels of the upstart league but was waived in camp.
On October 10th, Carr would get a camp deal with Boston and gave it the proverbial college try.
It would not be enough, however, and by the 15th the North Carolinian had been waived for the second time that summer, heading overseas to play in Israel for a season before returning to the ABA and NBA.
Carr would return to the team as a player in 1979, winning two titles with the team in 1981 and 1984, and would one day become general manager (1994-97) and coach (1995-97).
He would average 6.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.3 assists as a player for the Celtics.
Happy birthday Clarence Glover! #Celtics pic.twitter.com/rjRbVZIyWE
— Honest☘️Larry (@HonestLarry1) November 1, 2020
It is also the date of former Celtics power forward Clarence Glover’s debut with the team in 1971, in a 97-75 blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors at the Garden.
The Western Kentucky product — recently taken by Boston with the 10th overall pick of that year’s draft — logged 2 points, as many rebounds, and an assist in 5 minutes of play for a modest first game with the Celtics.
Today is also the date that the Celtics retired the No. 21 jersey of guard Bill Sharman and the No. 15 jersey of Tommy Heinsohn, the two legendary Celtics having their ultimate team honor on the same day in 1966.
For Sharman, it had been five seasons since he retired in 1961 with a total of 4 titles, 8 All-Star bids, and 7 All-NBA team honors to his name among many others.
Heinsohn had himself retired from the sport a year prior in 1966, having had a career with 8 titles, 6 All-Star bids, and 4 All-NBA team elections to cap off a Hall of Fame career.
Along with the honor of having their jerseys raised up to the rafters on the same day, Heinsohn and Sharman share the honor of being one of a mere five people inducted into the Hall of Fame as both player and coach — former teammate Bill Russell being another.
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