47 Facts About Red Auerbach

Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach was an American professional basketball coach and executive.

Red Auerbach was a head coach in the National Basketball Association, most notably with the Boston Celtics.

Red Auerbach took his legendary Celtics team on an unprecedented championship run, winning eight NBA championships in a row from 1959 to 1966.

Red Auerbach introduced the fast break strategy as an offensive tool.

Red Auerbach coached numerous players who went on to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

The notable Hall of Fame players Red Auerbach coached include Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, and Bill Sharman.

Red Auerbach played a key role in combating racial discrimination in the NBA.

Red Auerbach made history by drafting the first African-American NBA player, Chuck Cooper, introducing the first African-American starting five, and hiring Bill Russell to be the first African-American head coach in North American sports in 1966.

In 1970, Red Auerbach was named president of the Celtics, a role he held until 1997.

Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach was born in Brooklyn, New York City, on September 20,1917.

Red Auerbach was one of four children of Marie and Hyman Red Auerbach.

Amid the Great Depression, Red Auerbach played basketball as a guard at PS 122 and Eastern District High School, where he was named "Second Team All-Brooklyn" by the World-Telegram in his senior year.

In those years, Red Auerbach began to develop the technique known as the fast break.

In 1941, Red Auerbach began coaching basketball at the St Albans School.

Red Auerbach coached at Roosevelt High School in Washington, DC for two years.

On February 4,1943, Auerbach appeared in a game for the Harrisburg Senators of the American Basketball League and scored one point.

Red Auerbach served in the US Navy for three years and coached the Navy basketball team in Norfolk.

At the US Navy, Auerbach caught the eye of Washington millionaire Mike Uline, who hired him to coach the Washington Capitols in the newly founded Basketball Association of America, a predecessor of the NBA.

Red Auerbach later wrote that he "felt pretty bad waiting for [Gerard] to die" and that it was "no way to get a job".

Red Auerbach left Duke after a few months when Ben Kerner, owner of the Tri-Cities Blackhawks, gave him the green light to rebuild the team from scratch.

Red Auerbach traded more than two dozen players in just six weeks.

In 1950, Red Auerbach took a position as the athletic director of Kutsher's Hotel in the Catskills, NY.

Red Auerbach argued the flashy Cousy lacked the poise necessary to make his team, taunting him as a "local yokel".

Red Auerbach emphasized the need for role players like Frank Ramsey and John Havlicek, who became two of the first legitimate sixth men in NBA history, a role later played by Don Nelson.

Red Auerbach popularized smoking a victory cigar whenever he thought a game was already decided, a habit that became cult-like in popularity in the Boston area.

Red Auerbach traded away both Silas and Westphal because they wanted salary increases that would have made them higher earners than the best player on the Celtics, which was not acceptable to Auerbach.

Red Auerbach waited for a year until the future Hall of Fame forward Bird arrived, finally setting aside his team salary rules when it became clear that his choices were paying Bird a record-setting rookie salary or watch him re-enter the 1979 draft.

Red Auerbach knew the brilliant, hard-working Bird would be the cornerstone of a new Celtics generation.

In 1980, Red Auerbach pulled off what became known as "The Steal of The Century".

In 1984, after he relinquished his general managing duties to Jan Volk, Red Auerbach focused on continuing as president and later vice-chairman of the Boston Celtics.

Red Auerbach would stay on with the Celtics as president until 1997, as vice chairman until 2001, and then became president again, a position he held until his death, although, in his final years, he was weakened by heart problems and often used a wheelchair.

Red Auerbach's brother Zang Auerbach, 4 years his junior, was a respected cartoonist and portraitist at the Washington Star.

Red Auerbach married Dorothy Lewis in the spring of 1941.

Red Auerbach recalled that at his 75th birthday party, 45 of his former players showed up; and when he turned 80, his perennial 1960s-era foe Wilt Chamberlain showed up, a gesture Auerbach dearly appreciated.

Red Auerbach made multiple such "all-time" rankings over the years, with his last one being in June 2006, months before his death.

Red Auerbach died of a heart attack on October 28,2006, at the age of 89.

Red Auerbach is credited with creating several generations of championship Boston Celtics teams, including the first Celtics dynasty with Bill Russell, which won an NBA record eight titles in a row.

That was not surprising; Red Auerbach went after the players of the highest intelligence and character, and then of course paid them horribly.

Red Auerbach faced a setback when Maxwell arrived that fall out of shape and, suffering from injuries, contributed little as the team was defeated by the Lakers in the 1985 Finals.

Two key events followed: Red Auerbach traded Maxwell to San Diego in exchange for former MVP Bill Walton, who played a significant role in winning its 16th title in 1986, the last championship during Red Auerbach's tenure.

Red Auerbach's story is portrayed in the 2006 documentary The First Basket.

Red Auerbach is featured as an interview subject for the film.

From his early days, Auerbach was convinced that the fast break, where a team used a quick outlet pass to fast guards who ran downcourt and scored before the opponent had re-established position, was a potent tactical weapon.

Further, Red Auerbach moved the emphasis away from individual accolades to teamwork.

Red Auerbach was known for choosing players for talent and motivation, regardless of skin color or ethnicity.

Red Auerbach constantly added new black players to his squad, including Bill Russell, Satch Sanders, Sam Jones, K C Jones, and Willie Naulls.

When Red Auerbach gave up coaching to become the Celtics general manager in 1966, he appointed Bill Russell his successor.