25 Greatest Celtics of All-Time : #1

[ram]

1. Russell
2. Cowens (very underrated, nevr gets his just due)
3. Bird

apologies to Hondo, DJ, Sam, Cooz, Sharman, McHale, Parish, Pierce, JoJo

HM to Bailey Howell, KC, Ainge, KG, Silas, Satch, Heinsohn, Walton, Ray Allen, Rondo, Tiny, Henderson (stole the ball), Em Bryant for 1969 playoffs

[Gemini]

#1 - Russell
#2 - Bird
#3 - Havlicek


Wanted to vote Sam Jones just becuase i feel he's underrated but i couldnt pull the trigger

[indeedproceed]

1. Russel
2. Bird
3. Havlicek

+1

[Eja117]

1 Bird
2 Russell
3 McHale just barely over KG due to Rambis clothesline

4 Dennis Johnson

Hard to put KG up that high for just 2 seasons worth of wearing the green.

Actually as I look back maybe you're right. I looked at the rules and originally interpreted it as best player to wear green, but actually it says best Celtic which is different from best player. There was no eligibility requirement other than had to be  a player and you could consider off court stuff. So I guess Ray doesn't make the list either

Yeh, sometime last year I posed the question the other way around, and KG would have to rank up there.  Names like Dominique were mentioned too - guys who had great careers, but didn't necessarily achieve greatness while a Celtic (though KG certainly qualifies for both, his longevity leaves him short on the All Time Great C's - 2 more banners and he gets his number retired though  )

Good point. You should have to be good for the Celts while a Celt or else Pistol Pete gets way up there and that's not what we're trying to do

[CelticWes34]

1) Russell
2) Bird
3) Hondo

[Topher]

Casperian can correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe from my past discussions with him - and the title of the thread - that the goal is to rank the top 25 Celtics of all time, only we're handling each spot one at a time - so you should get your wish in that sense.

That´s correct, it´s the first thread in a series of threads, planned as a bigger project for the whole off-season.

Apologies - guess I should have picked that up from the title.  This is a great idea.

Here are my rankings, giving near equal weight to off the court considerations:

1) Heinsohn
2) Russell
3) Cousy

- While Russell is the most impressive / unique player in sports history based on the number of championships he won, there has also never been anyone like Heinsohn.  He is a hall of fame player, who has been affiliated with the same team in some significant, visible capacity for over 50 years, and all 17 titles.  He's a lovable figure, and the Celtics seem to mean a little more to him than others.  He also went to college locally and settled in the region.  Also a key figure in NBA labor relations.

On the other hand, Russell loses big points for basically disowning the city and shunning the Celtics until recently.  Justified or not, he spent most of his post career days wanting nothing to do with Boston or the team (or that is at least the image of him that was created).  He goes in the two spot basically because he was so good and essentially established the Celtics legacy and dynasty.

Cousy also gets bonus points for his pre and post career affiliation with the region and the C's (of course, certainly not as strong and consistent as Heinsohn's affiliation though).  As time goes on, it also seems to become forgotten that Cousy was considered to have revolutionized the sport.  In his prime, he was one of the best, if not the best player in the league.

[Eja117]

When considering off court considerations I'd give Pierce a way higher spot for surviving all those stabbings. That was amazing.

[2short]

1.Russ
2.Bird
3.Cousy

then in order, tommy, hondo, cowens

[MattG12]

I feel very weird not ranking Red as number 1, but rules are rules.

[KG]

1. Russell
2. Bird
3. Havlicek

[Who]

Larry Bird
Bill Russell
John Havlicek