Skip navigation

Auerbach was ‘godfather of all the Celtics’


< Prev | 1 | 2
Slideshow
Golden State Warriors v Dallas Mavericks, Game 1
  Dancers from around the league
Check out some of the dancers from the NBA.

more photos

Video: NBA from NBC Sports
Abdul-Jabbar managing his illness
Nov. 15: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wants to be very clear that his cancer was caught early and that he's not dealing with a death sentence.

  Ask the NBA expert: Ira Winderman

Do you have a burning question about your favorite team or player? Submit it now, and then check back for our reader mailbag on the 1st and 15th of each month.

The city of Boston erected a statue of Auerbach on his 68th birthday in 1985, placing him on a park bench, holding a cigar, near historic Faneuil Hall. Kris Liakos, 24, stopped by to take a picture with the statue after seeing the news of Auerbach’s death on television.

“The statue’s been here since I was a kid,” the 24-year-old Celtics fan said. “That’s the kind of thing that happens to somebody when they die, but he’s been sitting on this bench for 20 years. That’s what he meant to this town.”

Down the street at the TD Banknorth Garden, fans watching the Bruins play the Ottawa Senators could spy the 16 NBA banners hanging from the rafters, along with the No. 2 the Celtics retired in Auerbach’s honor.

Story continues below ↓
advertisement | your ad here

“When you think of the Celtics, you think of Red Auerbach,” 46-year-old Dana Letiecq said after the hockey game. “That’s the bottom line.”

Joe O’Leary brought his 13-year-old son, Mark, to the game and to the Auerbach display at the new Garden’s sports museum.

“I don’t smoke many cigars, but whenever I do I think of Red,” the elder O’Leary said.

“Light one more up for Red,” said his brother-in-law, Mike Bohan.

Slide show
Image: Ding Jianjun
  Week in Sports Pictures
Pain on the skating rink, flying high on the hardwood, upsets on the football field, and more.

more photos

Those titles came in the Boston Garden, a beloved building that was shuttered with much sentimentality in 1995 to make way for what is now called the TD Banknorth Garden. But Auerbach was stung by a different emotion after watching the Celtics’ final game in the old building, a playoff loss to the Orlando Magic.

“(Expletive) the building,” Auerbach said. “We lost a ballgame.”

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


< Prev | 1 | 2

Sponsored links