This is #24 in a series of threads to determine the 25 greatest Celtics of All-Time.
Players to consider:
Jim Loscutoff
Kendrick Perkins
Rajon Rondo
Antoine Walker
Danny Ainge
Don Chaney
Charlie Scott
Ray Allen
M.L. Carr
Bailey Howell
Don Nelson
Rules1. Only former or current players are eligible.
No former coaches, GMs or owners. The Celtics´ history has just too many characters to include all of them.
You can´t vote for a player who has already won one of the earlier polls.
2. You can include off-the-court performances.
Although only former or current players are eligible, it is perfectly fine to include Tommy`s contributions as a coach and broadcaster, Danny Ainge`s work as a GM or Dave Cowens´ nap on a parkbench after celebrating with the fans in 1974 in your evaluation.
3.
You have three votesThe first vote is worth 4 points, the second 2 points, and the third 1 point. This system is certainly more suited for a poll like this than a simple "one vote" poll.
Just write a post with your votes, and after the poll is closed, I will go through the thread and count every vote personally. I´ll close the poll in 2-4 days.
#1 Bill Russell
#2 Larry Bird
#3 John Havlicek
#4 Bob Cousy
#5 Kevin McHale
#6 Tommy Heinsohn
#7 Paul Pierce
#8 Dave Cowens
#9 Sam Jones
#10 Robert Parish
#11 Bill Sharman
#12 Dennis Johnson
#13 JoJo White
#14 Kevin Garnett
#15 Cedric Maxwell
#16 Reggie Lewis
#17 K.C. Jones
#18 Frank Ramsey
#19 Ed Macauley
#20 Satch Sanders
#21 Tiny Archibald
#22 Paul Silas
Winner of the last poll:Daniel Ray "Danny" AingeTalented in multiple sports, Ainge starred in high school on his football team and led North Eugene High School to back-to-back state basketball championships in 1976–77, earning all-state honors both years; he was considered one of the top prep football recruits in the state of Oregon. As a junior he was named to the 1977 Parade Magazine High School All-America team. Danny Ainge is the only person to be a high school first team All-American in football, basketball, and baseball.
Ainge played basketball at Brigham Young University and became a household name after hitting one of the greatest shots in NCAA March Madness history against Notre Dame in 1981. His coast to coast drive with only seven seconds remaining gave the Cougars a one point win. Ainge concluded his senior year by winning the Eastman Award as well as the John R. Wooden Award - given to the best collegiate player in the nation. During his four-year career at BYU, Ainge was an All-American, a two-time First Team Academic All-American, the WAC Player of the Year and a four-time All-WAC selection
Ainge was selected in baseball's 1977 amateur draft by Toronto. He made it to the major leagues with the Blue Jays in 1979 while still in college, but amassed only modest numbers for the team. Mostly a second baseman, he played third base and outfield positions as well, hitting .220 in his baseball career with 2 home runs. He is the youngest player in Toronto Blue Jays history to hit a home run at 20 years and 77 days. Ainge played on the losing end of Len Barker's 1981 perfect game, going 0-for-2.
After 3 years with the Blue Jays, Ainge decided to pursue a career in basketball and was chosen in the 1981 NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics, who had to buy out Ainge's contract from the Blue Jays after a legal battle.
Not everything went well for Ainge in basketball at first. According to Larry Bird in his autobiography Drive: The Story of My Life, Ainge had a terrible first day of practice, "shooting 0-19". The coach, Bill Fitch gave Ainge a rough time, saying his batting average was better than his shooting percentage on the basketball court. But Ainge became one of the important pieces of the team that won the NBA title in 1984 and 1986, and a major contributor of the mid to late 1980s Celtics teams.
He was known as a hard-nosed player, often infuriating opponents with his combative style and brash personality. In a 1983 playoff game against Atlanta, he exchanged blows with the 7 foot 1 inch Tree Rollins and was ejected from the contest. Larry Bird gives an account about Ainge's fight with Rollins in his autobiography Drive. Bird said that Danny had called Rollins a sissy earlier which ended up in the two fighting. Bird said that after the fight was broken up, Ainge rose up off the floor laughing, stating, "That big sissy just bit me." Also, while playing for the Phoenix Suns, Ainge got into a tussle with Michael Jordan at mid court and both were given a technical foul. In a 1994 postseason game, Ainge rifled an inbounding pass at the head of Houston Rockets guard Mario Elie, striking him in the face, snapping his neck back.
In 1989, Ainge was traded to the Sacramento Kings for young center Joe Kleine, whom the Celtics saw as a possible substitute to the aging Robert Parish, and Ed Pinckney.
Source: Wikipedia
Final Outcome (points in parenthesis):
Total Votes: 25
Danny Ainge (80)
Don Nelson (27)
Ray Allen (27)
Antoine Walker (15)
Bailey Howell (6)
Don Chaney (6)
Dino Radja (4)
Two players tied with 2 points
Six players tied with 1 point