The John Havlicek Interview
By:
Michael D. McClellan
|
Thursday, October 18th,
2007
The Celtics, meanwhile, continued to roll. The retirement of Bob Cousy brought with it a certain amount of concern, but Boston still had Russell in his prime. The team won 59 games, then defeated the Cincinnati Royals to advance to the NBA Finals. After dispatching the San Francisco Warriors in five games, the Celtics were champions yet again. Havlicek had improved so much that he was named to the All-NBA Second Team.
Havlicek continued to play the role of six man through the end of the Bill Russell Era, winning championships in 1965, 1966, 1968 and 1969. He provided energy and offensive punch off the bench, which became more and more important as the key nucleus began to age. Russell was 35 by the time he retired with that last championship, and Sam Jones was 36, but the Celtics were able to continue winning in large part due to players like Havlicek coming in and making contributions big and small.
Perhaps his biggest moment during this era came during the 1965 Eastern Division Finals. The Celtics, winners of six consecutive NBA Championships, suddenly found themselves on the brink of elimination. Battling Wilt Chamberlain and the vaunted Philadelphia 76ers, the Celtics were without the basketball in the dying seconds of Game 7. With Hal Greer inbounding the basketball and only five seconds on the clock, Havlicek deflected the pass to Sam Jones, preserving a hard-fought win and helping keep the Celtics' championship streak intact. The play was made famous by Celtics radio broadcaster Johnny Most, whose call is part of Celtics lore: "Havlicek steals it. Over to Sam Jones. Havlicek stole the ball! It's all over! Johnny Havlicek stole the ball!"
With Russell's retirement following that 1969 championship, Havlicek found himself not only starting for the first time in his professional career, but he also found himself the unquestioned leader of the next generation of Boston Celtics. New head coach Tom Heinsohn installed an offense to take advantage of Havlicek's skills, and Havlicek responded with the best statistical season of his career: 24 ppg, 7.8 rpg, and 6.8 apg. His scoring average would increase through the early 1970s, with 28.9 and 27.5 campaigns in 1970-71 and 1971-72.
While Havlicek blossomed, the Celtics were being rebuilt. Players like Don Chaney, JoJo White and Dave Cowens were added via the draft, while players like Paul Silas and Charlie Scott arrived at different points via trade. As a result, the Celtics did not stay down for long. By 1974 the Celtics were NBA World Champions all over again, and Havlicek was the man who helped make everything go, running his defenders ragged even though some were nearly a decade younger.
"I see a lot in common between Ray Allen and John," says White. "Look at how Ray has been able to play at such a high level for so long. John was the same way. He took care of himself. He was always in phenomenal shape. He was averaging 45 minutes per game after turning 30, so that should tell you what kind of condition he was in. He would run his opponents into the Boston Garden parquet and he wouldn't be breathing hard. He was unbelievable."
Havlicek was named NBA Finals MVP for his brilliance against the Milwaukee Bucks. For Havlicek, the win helped to ease the disappointment of missing out on a championship a season earlier, as a shoulder injury against the New York Knicks prevented the Celtics from advancing to the 1973 NBA Finals. The Celtics had registered an incredible 68-14 regular season record, only to fall in seven games to the Knicks with Havlicek injured for a large portion of the series. The Knicks would go on to defeat the Los Angeles Lakers for the championship.
"Definitely one of my most disappointing moments as a Celtic," Havlicek says. "We had such a great season, only losing 14 games. We felt we were good enough to win a championship, but it just didn't work out that way for us."
After winning it all in 1974, the Celtics would win it all again two years later. The six game series against the Phoenix Suns is best remembered for Game 5 in the old Boston Garden, a triple-overtime affair many still consider to be the greatest game ever played. The Celtics, unable to hold onto a huge lead, found themselves battling both the Suns and the referees in the stifling Garden heat. The Celtics would somehow prevail, going up 3-2 in the series before closing it out a game later in Phoenix.
That 1976 NBA Championship was Havlicek's last, which gave him a total of eight. Six of those came as part of the Russell Dynasty, the other two with the tireless Havlicek running the show. He would walk away following the 1977-78 season, at age 38, with 26,395 points, 8,007 rebounds and 6,114 assists spread out over a 16 year career. He would later be named to the NBA's 35th and 50th Anniversary Teams, and in 1983 was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Celtic Nation is honored to bring you this interview.