Latest news with #Cooz
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Boston Celtics legend Bob Cousy shares doubts on former team's ceiling, 3-point reliance
Hall of Fame Boston Celtics point guard Bob Cousy has seen quite a lot of basketball, and shared some insights into the modern game and his former team on the cusp of his birthday 97th birthday with longtime Celtics beat writer Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe. Generally fair in his critiques of Boston and the NBA, Cooz is not shy about sharing his thoughts with regard to the state of the team he won six titles with in the 1950s and early 1960s. The heavy reliance on offense coming from beyond the arc -- particularly as a first attack -- particularly irks the Celtics legend. "I like the three as a weapon," explained Cousy. "But not as the first (expletive) option. It's always going to be there for you. It's not something you have to create." "You're going to have it when you want it," he added. "So why eliminate the other options? I know we're into analytics. I can't fight with the computer, but I know what I experienced. And in my judgment, there are benefits to attacking the basket first. I'll go to my grave disagreeing with Danny (Ainge) and Brad (Stevens) about this." As to whether he feels like this version of the team is ready to compete without injured star forward Jayson Tatum, Cousy was skeptical. "In my judgment, Jaylen (Brown) is not quite at the superstar level that Tatum is at ... (Derrick) White's a good player, and he'll produce, and he'll be consistent, but his game doesn't lend itself to carrying a team." Given Boston's front court is a considerable mess when it comes to the level of talent needed to compete at a high level -- especially with Tatum, the team's best rebounder, out -- the Cooz may have a point. And with a roster not so well-built for offense from beyond the arc, the Cooz might just be pleasantly surprised by the style of play he sees from this iteration of the team. If perhaps not as much by the season's win totals for Boston on a team perhaps too faulted to get very deep into the postseason -- if they can even get into it at all. Listen to "Havlicek Stole the Pod" on: Spotify: iTunes: YouTube:
USA Today
4 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Today in Boston Celtics history: Cousy, Anthony, Arroyo, Udoka born; Davis re-signs
Today in Boston Celtics history, Hall of Fame point guard Bob Cousy was born in Manhattan, New York City. Cousy played his collegiate ball at Holy Cross, where he won an NCAA championship in 1947. For whatever reason, he was a player iconic team president Red Auerbach wanted nothing to do with in the NBA draft. But Cousy ended up becoming a Celtic anyway after being taken by the team in the (defunct) Chicago Stags dispersal draft. The Manhattan native was named to 13 consecutive All-Star teams with Boston, which of course changed the mind of Auerbach on having Cooz (as the former Holy Cross guard is called as a nickname) around. In 1957, Cousy would win the first of six NBA championships with the Celtics, including a Finals MVP that postseason season. He led the NBA in assists between 1953 and 1960 and made a dozen All-NBA first or second teams while playing for Boston. Cooz retired in 1963 at age 34 (he would briefly come out of retirement to be a player-coach for the Kansas City Royals -- now Sacramento Kings), and was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1971. He remains a part of the organization to this day, working as a marketing consultant for the team. Other birthdays include former Celtics center Joel Anthony and ex-Celtic guard Carlos Arroyo. Joel Anthony was born this day in 1982 in Montreal, Canada, and played his NCAA basketball for UNLV. He played for the Miami Heat before joining the team in a three-team deal that sent MarShon Brooks and Jordan Crawford to the Golden State Warriors. The former Runnin' Rebel would play 21 games for the Celtics in the 2013-14 season, averaging 1 point and 1.5 rebounds per game. Arroyo was born in Fajardo, Puerto Rico on this date in 1979, and played for Florida International University at the college level. Boston would be the last stop of his career, with whom he signed as a late-season addition in 2011. Arroyo logged 2.4 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.7 assists over 16 games with the team. The players share their birthday with former Celtics head coach Ime Udoka, who was born today in 1977 in Portland, Oregon. Udoka played college ball at USF and Portland State, and latched on to the Los Angeles Lakers after spending time in the D League (as the G League was called then). The Portland native also played for the New York Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings before finishing his playing career with the San Antonio Spurs. There, he would make the leap to assistant coaching, winning a title with San Antonio in that role in 2014, and also had stops with the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets. Udoka and the Celtics would part ways after only one season after the coach had an inappropriate workplace relationship It is also the date former Celtics center Glen Davis re-signed with Boston on a two-year, $6.5 million contract. Davis had come to the team in the trade that brought Ray Allen to the team in 2007 and played four seasons for the club, winning a title with them in 2008. He averaged 7.6 points and 4.1 points per game while with Boston.
Boston Globe
5 days ago
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Celtics legend Bob Cousy talks about turning 97 on Saturday, the Green, Caitlin Clark and the WNBA, and other thoughts
'We've been doing it for over 30 years,' says Cousy. 'We solve all the problems of the world. And I'm not even the oldest member. Two weeks ago, we had a cake for my accountant, who's two weeks older than I am.' Cooz's Thursday ritual includes a shrimp cocktail, a cup of chowder, and a couple of Beefeaters on the rocks with a twist. 'Occasionally, I'll stray and have a third, but my daughter, Ticia, she keeps an eye on me from the next table.' Advertisement How does he feel about being 97? 'I don't particularly like being told that I'm the only one left on the planet Earth that played in the NBA in 1950. I've been telling Satch for the last year or two, not to look over his shoulder because he and I are the last two that played on those teams. I don't know if that's a good thing.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Satch is Tom 'Satch' Sanders, a teammate from the 1960s, when Cousy, Bill Russell, and Red Auerbach ruled the basketball world. Cousy was a rookie with the Celtics in 1950 and NBA MVP in 1956-57 — the season the Celtics won the first of their 18 banners. He won six championship rings before retiring in 1963, while the Celtics were in the midst of winning eight consecutive NBA crowns. Advertisement Now Cousy and 86-year-old Sanders are the only ones left. 'I'm in double overtime, waiting to get to the big basketball court in the sky,' says the Cooz. Cousy lives in the same Worcester home he owned during the '60s, when he commuted down Route 9 to the Old Boston Garden with another Worcester resident, teammate Tommy Heinsohn. It's not easy being 97. Neuropathy has wreaked havoc on Cousy's legs and feet, and he spends a lot of his days in a wheelchair. 'Everything is breaking down,' he says. 'I'm in a deteriorating process, there's no question, but I'm still able to hobble into the shower. I try to focus on the positive things, how lucky I've been in my life.' Cousy returned to the Garden for opening night last October, and helped raise the 2023-24 championship banner. What did he think of the Celtics' flameout in the second round of the 2025 playoffs against the Knicks? Legend Bob Cousy helped raise the Celtics' 2023-24 championship banner last October at TD Garden. Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff 'You have to be there to have a sense of what's going on, and I'm not,' he starts. 'I get the impression that [coach Joe] Mazzulla did a good job and had their attention. But in the playoffs, in my experience, the best team wins. There are upsets occasionally, but I have no understanding of how the Celtics could collapse, Many of us blamed the loss on Boston's overreliance on 3-point shooting. 'I like the three as a weapon,' Cousy says. 'But not as the first [expletive] option. It's always going to be there for you. It's not something you have to create. You're going to have it when you want it. So why eliminate the other options? I know we're into analytics. I can't fight with the computer, but I know what I experienced. And in my judgment, there are benefits to attacking the basket first. I'll go to my grave disagreeing with Danny [Ainge] and Brad [Stevens] about this. Obviously the coaches they hire share that philosophy. So that's what we've got.' Advertisement Can Jaylen Brown carry the Celtics while Jayson Tatum (Achilles') is on the shelf this season? 'In my judgment, Jaylen is not quite at the superstar level that Tatum is at,' Cousy said. 'Can he carry the load by himself? I see a major rebuilding effort here. Jaylen certainly won't bring them to the promised land . . . [Derrick] White's a good player and he'll produce and he'll be consistent, but his game doesn't lend itself to carrying a team. ' Does Cooz watch the WNBA? 'It's a saleable product and [Caitlin] Clark's done a really good job selling it. It's enjoyable. My son-in-law is from Indiana and he's a Clark fan. She's exceptional,' he said. 'She's had a tremendous impact on that league and their earning potential. They should be kissing the ground she walks on, not trying to foul her and get her out of the game.' Advertisement Cousy still reads a daily newspaper, at least one book per week, has deals with memorabilia companies to sign photos for cash, and watches a lot of television news. 'Anything to maintain my interests,' he says. 'You don't want to be just laying in a chair, comatose. 'Lately, I've been thinking about how lucky I've been in so many ways. In 1927, my parents decided to come across the pond from a small farming community in France on a big boat while I was still in my mother's stomach. I got to play a child's game for a living and learned to play that game pretty damn well. I came out of a ghetto where my only moral code was survival and self-interest, but basketball allowed me to get a Jesuit education. Bob Cousy (right) dribbles past Holy Cross teammate George Kaftan during a 1948 practice. Boston Globe Archive/ 'I walked into Holy Cross in 1946 — they'd just re-started the basketball program — and we won the [expletive] NCAA Tournament! Then came the whole Celtic situation with Arnold [Auerbach]. We bonded. We both wanted the same things. Then Russell. And we accomplished what no other team has ever done. 'I'm the luckiest SOB on the face of the planet and those are some of the reasons why. None of that has changed, except now I won't be helping hang up another flag, I don't think. That's going to take awhile . . . I'm more likely to live to 100 than the Celtics win another championship.' ⋅ Quiz: 1: In order, name the top five strikeout artists among all MLB relievers (only strikeouts achieved while pitching in relief); 2: Name three post-1900 pitchers with multiple 300-strikeout seasons who are not in the Hall of Fame, excluding those not yet eligible (answers below). Advertisement ⋅ Anagram of the week: The Olde Towne Team = How talented! Emote! ⋅ It's hard to think of the Red Sox making a better move than signing 21-year-old ⋅ The scalding-hot Sox last weekend gave fans a series to remember, beating the first-place Astros three straight after a disappointing trade deadline. Unfortunately, two of the games were not on NESN. Rookie Roman Anthony and the Red Sox swept the first-place Astros last weekend. Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff ⋅ Boston is fortunate to have Steve Pagliuca. He was a critical component of the Irv Grousbeck-bankrolled Celtics ownership group, bringing his own cash to the table, recommending the hiring of Ainge, and largely staying in the background for 22 seasons and two championship runs. Ever the dreamer, Pagliuca championed the doomed quest to bring the 2024 Olympics to Boston, then bought his own Italian soccer team. After Chisholm's group emerged with the winning bid for the Celtics this spring — a minor upset given Pagliuca's local connections, longtime service, and major stake in the current group — Pagliuca responded by announcing a plan to bring the WNBA's Connecticut Sun to Boston. He's up against the WNBA's traditional clueless intransigence, and Advertisement ⋅ Can't tell you how many prospect-loving Sox fans insisted that the acquisition of James Tibbs in the Rafael Devers salary-dump giveaway would be the future key to the deal. We were told that Tibbs was a prospect with power potential. He was the 13th overall pick of the 2024 draft (the Sox passed on him, taking Texas A&M outfielder Braden Montgomery with the 12th pick). Tibbs played right field, first base, and DH in his short stint with Double A Portland, hitting .207, and was one of the three 'prospects' (note to readers: not all minor leaguers are 'prospects') sent to the Dodgers for righthander Dustin May at the deadline. On Wednesday, while May was going just 3⅔ innings and taking the loss against the Royals, Tibbs went 4 for 4 with 2 home runs, 2 walks, 4 RBIs, and 3 runs Wednesday for Tulsa, the Dodgers' Double A affiliate. ⋅ The free-falling Yankees made a lot of pickups at the trade deadline. In the first game after the deals, four of the new guys faltered in a hideous 13-12 loss to the Marlins. Newfound relievers David Bednar, Jake Bird, and Camilo Doval set fire to a big lead, and utilityman Jose Caballero made a brutal error in right field. The back page in the next day's vaunted New York Post screamed, 'CAN WE SEND THEM BACK?' David Bednar was among the relievers who struggled in their debuts with the Yankees. Rebecca Blackwell/Associated Press ⋅ Beleaguered Giants general manager Buster Posey traded three of his former teammates at the deadline: Mike Yastrzemski, Tyler Rogers, and Doval. ⋅ We're eager to see what 2024 Patriots draft pick Javon Baker can do. Selected in the fourth round out of Central Florida, Baker told us to get our popcorn and said, Patriots wide receiver Javon Baker had a disappointing rookie year in 2024, and now is battling to make the team. Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff ⋅ Seven-Years-Of-College-Down-the-Drain Dept.: Syracuse linebacker David Reese began his college football career in 2018, and failed to use any eligibility at Florida because of a freshman redshirt year (2018), two medical redshirt years (2019, 2021), and the free COVID year in 2020. Reese is in his eighth season, as is Hawaii linebacker Logan Taylor, who is married with three children. ⋅ RJ Luis, New Celtic RJ Luis got benched in St. John's NCAA Tournament loss to Arkansas. Steven Senne/Associated Press ⋅ Andre Tippett keynoted a recent luncheon at which the Patriots Foundation and Bank of America announced a $50,000 gift to six local nonprofits, including Braintree-based Good Sports, which provides equipment to young athletes in communities of need. ⋅ The 31st annual Old Time Baseball Game is Wednesday, Aug. 20, at 7 p.m. at St. Peter's Field in North Cambridge. The game will benefit The Boston Home, a nonprofit residence for adults with advanced neurological disorders. Brock Holt is scheduled to play. ⋅ Best wishes to former Ch. 7 sports guy Trey Daerr, who has left Boston for a gig in Arkansas after 11 years in our market. A Pittsburgh native, Daerr made a lot of friends here and did great work. We miss him already. ⋅ RIP Elizabeth Polino of Winthrop, wife of James Polino for 52 years, and mom of Red Sox player parking lot boss Jimmy Polino. Elizabeth died July 26 after battling cancer and was loved by all. ⋅ Quiz answers: 1. Hoyt Wilhelm (1,363), Rich Gossage (1,340), Aroldis Chapman (1,311), Craig Kimbrel (1,266), and Kenley Jansen (1,261); 2. Curt Schilling, J.R. Richard, and Sam McDowell each did it twice. Stan Grossfeld of the Globe staff contributed. Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at
