On this day in Boston Celtics history, the storied franchise retired legendary head coach and team president Arnold Jacob “Red” Auerbach’s jersey number in 1986.
Of course, Auerbach had given up the sport as a player long before becoming part of the Celtics organization, having played collegiately for George Washington University before the Second World War began. Rather, it was in recognition for building the NBA behemoth that won an unprecedented total of 16 titles in his lifetime as either head coach or general manager of the Celtics in a span of years stretching from 1957 all the way to 1986.
