THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020 Page 7 A Celtic through and through By Th e Old Sachem, Bill Stewart T homas William Heinsohn was a Boston Celtic over six decades. Starting as a player, he became the coach and was a broadcaster for the Celtics. He also followed Bob Cousy, becoming the second president of the NBA Players Association, established a pension plan for players and almost forced a player’s strike before the All-Star game of 1964. Heinsohn was born August 26, 1934 (seven days before me), in Jersey City, N.J., and died November 10, 2020, in Newton, Mass. His basketball journey started at St. Michael’s High School in nearby Union City, N.J. He was awarded a scholarship to The College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, where he became the all-time leading scorer with 1,789 points and had an average of 22.1 points per game for the Crusaders. LETTER | FROM PAGE 4 and utensils to any gathering • Opt for disposable, single-use dressings, condiments or party supplies • Go outdoors or open windows for indoor events • Limit guests in attendance • Limit the number of people in food preparation areas • Create expectations ahead He also set a school record for scoring in a single game when he tossed in 51 points in a contest as a senior against Boston College. For the season he averaged 27.4 points per game and 21.1 rebounds per game. He was chosen by the Boston Celtics as a “territorial” draft pick in the 1956 draft. As a collegian Tom was named a Consensus First team All-American in his senior year and was named Second-team All-American by Collier’s as a junior in 1955, and third team All-American by the Associated Press, the United Press International and the National Education Association. His number 24 jersey was retired by Holy Cross. Tom was a power forward. In his fi rst professional season, he was selected for the AllStar game and chosen as the NBA Rookie of the Year ahead of Bill Russell. That season he won his first championship ring, while scoring 37 points and grabbing 23 rebounds in of time, including next steps if someone gets sick • Frequently clean and disinfect surfaces • Get a fl u shot before traveling There is much more to consider. Check out the CDC’s website for the full Thanksgiving guidance. If you need testing, check out Massachusetts’ Stop the Spread website for the latest information. Bill Stewart The Old Sachem the double-overtime seventh game of the NBA Finals. Heinsohn was a large part of the club that won eight NBA titles in nine years that included seven in a row from 1959 to 1965. Only Bill Russell and “Sad Sam” Jones won more championship rings during their playing years. His record of playing in the NBA Finals nine consecutive years is unmatched in the league. A foot injury led to Tom’s retiring after nine seasons. In addition to his eight NBA championship rings, he was an NBA AllStar six times and NBA Rookie of the Year in 1957. His number 15 jersey was retired by the Celtics. Over his nine seasons as a player in 654 regular season games, he had an average of 29.4 minutes per This is tough and it’s going to require us to get creative. My parents are going to Zoom into our Thanksgiving, even though they live a few miles away. However you are celebrating, Happy Thanksgiving. I am thankful to have the chance to serve you in Congress. Stay safe. Sincerely, Seth Moulton Congressman game, a field goal percentage of .405, a free throw percentage of .790, a rebound percentage of 8.8, an assists percentage of 2.0 per game and 18.6 points per game percentage. In 104 playoff games, he had percentages of 31.0 minutes per game, .402 fi eld goals, .743 free throws, 9.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 19.8 points per game. After retiring, Heinsohn became a broadcaster for WKBG’s Celtics broadcasts after his selection by Red Auerbach. He broadcasted playby-play for WFTX, WSBK and WABU before becoming the coach of the Celtics. He usually awarded “Tommy Points” to the player he thought displayed extra hustle in the contest. One player in each game who played exceptionally was awarded the “Tommy Award” (www.c snne.com/pages/v3_ thetommyaward). He brought a sense of humor and became indignant when questioning a referee’s call. He called the NBA playoff s with Dick Stockton and also called college NCAA playoff games. Tom Heinsohn was named the coach of the Boston Celtics in the 1969-1970 season. He was named Coach of the Year for the 1972-1973 season, when the team recorded 68 wins and only 14 losses. However, the team was upset in the Conference Finals after winning the Atlantic Division in the regular season. The Celtics repeated as Division champions for the next three years, were second in the 1976-1977 season and third in the 1977-1978 season. The Celtics won the NBA title in the 1973-1974 and 1975-1976 seasons under Heinsohn’s leadership as coach. His teams had 427 wins and 263 losses for a .619 percentage. In the 80 playoff games as coach, his team had 47 wins and 33 losses for a .588 percentage. Heinsohn was inducted twice into the Basketball Hall of Fame, both as a player and a coach, and the College Hall of Fame. For those interested, you can look into the Basketball Hall of Fame online at www.hoophall.com. When not dealing with basketball, Heinsohn played golf, did painting, headed a life insurance company and wrote a book, “Give ’em the Hook” with writer Joe Fitzgerald. Along with Bill Russell and Bob Cousy, Tom Heinsohn will go down in history as one of the great Celtics of all time.
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