Skip to main content

Dave Cowens: Celtics Savior of Sorts

 Ten-time Celtics Champion, Sam Jones, was expected to retire after the 1968-69 season, but Bill Russell calling it quits was a bit of a shocker. Sam was going to be sorely missed, but John Havlicek, JoJo White and Larry Siegfried were still arouind to pick up some of the slack. But who was going to replace the seemingly-irreplaceable Russell?


Well, it wasn't going to be 7-footer, Hank Finkel, traded to Boston prior to the 1969-70 season. Finkel had his best statistical season in his first stint in Beantown, but he was not Russ - not even close. As Hank's wife, Kathy, said at the time - she knew her husband was not Bill Russell every time she saw his paycheck.

Then came "The Savior". 6'8.5", 130 pound Dave Cowens, taken at number-4 in the 1970 NBA draft.. "Too small to play center in the NBA" is what many critics uttered, but "Big Red" proved them wrong. He never lived-and-breathed basketball, but once on the court, he gave you everything.

Henry Finkel remained with the Celtics for several more seasons as a backup to Dave, but it was Cowens that proved to be an extremely-effective replacement for perhaps the best center to ever take to the NBA hardwood.

Eight-time All-Star, 1973 MVP, 2-time Champ - these are just a few of the awards earned by one of the most fiery and intense players I have ever had the pleasure to observe. Many younger Celtics fans may not give "Big Red" the credit he deserves since he played in the 1970's, but I rate him somewhere between #4-and-#6 on the Celtics' All-Time Ladder. Where do our readers put him.


Comments

  1. I've said before, and I'll say again ... if a healthy Dave Cowens were playing in this era, we'd all be scratching our heads saying, "Draymond WHO?"

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Elm Street Nightmare

 A true-and-suspenseful horror tale of haunting, homicides and the hunt for triple-murderer, Daniel Laplante - as told by the cops that were there By Lt. Thomas Lane (Ret.)  Daniel Laplante - cold, calm, clever, calculating- Photo: YouTube   Elm Street  surfaces on six (6) occasions in the Laplante saga: 1.) He  resided on Elm Street  in Townsend, Massachusetts  2.) He  kidnapped a woman  at gunpoint on  Elm Street, Pepperell , Massachusetts 3.) That kidnapped woman fled to the Gillogly residence on Elm Street after escaping from the armed fugitive, Laplante. 4.) He was arrested and transported to Massachusetts State Police Barracks on Elm Street in Concord . 5.) He was  tried, convicted   and sentenced for the murders at  Superior Court , corner of  Elm Stree t and Gorham Street, Lowell, Massachusetts. 6.) The author, Thomas Lane, lived on Elm Steet, Pepperell, Massachusetts while a police Sgt./Lt. for the town police force. When evil and cleverness reside in the same mind, the st

Did the Celtics Kevin McHale really have a wingspan of 8-feet?

According to many sources, the Celtics Kevin McHale did indeed have an estimated wingspan of 8-feet. One of those sources is Wikipedia, as seen below: Kevin McHale American basketball player DescriptionKevin Edward McHale is an American retired basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Boston Celtics. He is a Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, and is regarded as one of the best power forwards of all time. He was named to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team. Wikipedia Born: December 19, 1957 (age 61 years), Hibbing, MN Wingspan: 8′ 0″ Height: 6′ 10″ Spouse: Lynn McHale (m. 1982) NBA draft: 1980, Boston Celtics (Round: 1 / Pick: 3) Hall of fame induction: 1999 Number: 32 (Boston Celtics / Power forward, Center) Kevin was listed at 6'10" tall when he was drafted with the 3rd pick in the 1980 draft. Red Auerbach, in yet another heist, brought in both McHale and center Robert Parish (via trade) prior to the Celtics' 1980-81 Champion

In defense of Marcus Smart

 Let me make it clear first of all that I am totally against making a threat of any kind that even hints at harming, or certainly killing, another human being. Marcus Smart was wrong in doing so in the Celtics loss to the tanking Oklahoma City Thunder , and he deserved the one-game suspension. But to be honest, part of me loved that it occurred. . This type of thing can happen when a player gets to a point "beyond frustration" and is having a bad game. Marcus and his teammates have been under-performing generally - were in the process of losing to a pathetic-and-tanking Thunder team - and Smart was having a bad game . And he let loose verbally at the closest target - an NBA official. Wilt Chamberlain did a similar act versus referee, Earl Strom when Wilt was having his usual tortuous time at the free throw line (per Chicago Tribune's Sam Smith): ''He was in one of those 1-for-13s,'' recalls referee Earl Strom. ''Nothing was getting close. S