Red Auerbach, the president and renowned Boston Celtics coach, was born on this day.
Legendary Boston Celtics head coach and manager Arnold Jacob “Red” Auerbach was born in 1917 in Brooklyn, New York City, on this day in Celtics history. With 16 titles as a coach or general manager, Auerbach is the most successful front office executive in the history of professional sports in North America. He was also a socially conscious ally of Black athletes.
In contemporary North American sports history, he drafted the first Black player (Chuck Cooper, 1950), fielded the first all-Black starting five (1964), and appointed the first Black head coach (Bill Russell, 1968).
Auerbach, a child of Russian Jewish immigrants, attended George Washington University on an athletic scholarship. He obtained his M.A. there and joined the fast break as a disciple.
Leave a Reply