On this day in Boston Celtics history, the team would lose several players to the expansion draft held in 1963 to populate two new teams being added to the league.
Expansion drafts function similarly to the regular draft, except the team or teams joining the league can raid the rosters of existing teams for players save for a certain number of “protected” players each team can prevent from being drafted away to the expansion team or teams.
The new teams in question would be the San Diego Rockets and Seattle Supersonics, the former now relocated in Houston, Texas as the Houston Rockets since relocating to Texas in 1971, and the latter now the Oklahoma City Thunder since moving to that state in 2008. Boston would lose three players in total to the two expansion teams.
Toby Kimball, one of @UConnMBB's greatest rebounders and a former @Celtics player, dies at 74 https://t.co/EXfKX1oeyX pic.twitter.com/fTpmTI4CR7
— Hartford Courant (@hartfordcourant) May 3, 2017
The first Boston player taken was UConn product Toby Kimball, a forward who played just one season with the Celtics.
He would average 2.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game across 38 contests.
The second Boston player drafted was Ron Watts, a 6-foot-6 forward out of Wake Forest taken with the 17th overall pick of the 1966 draft.
He would win a championship with the Celtics in his rookie season and played two seasons with Boston before being taken in the expansion draft, over which he averaged 1.4 points, as many rebounds, and 0.1 assists.
Finally, the last player selected from the Celtics’ roster was wing Jim Barnett, drafted by the Celtics with the eighth overall pick of the 1966 NBA Draft out of Oregon.
Barnett would play one season with the Celtics, averaging 4.1 points, 1.1 boards, and 0.9 assists per game.
It is also the birthday of big man Amir Johnson, born in Los Angeles, California in 1987.
Johnson signed a two-season contract to play for Boston in 2015 after stints with the Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors and would average 6.9 points, 5.5 boards, and 1.7 assists over his career with the Celtics.
1947-48 Boston Celtics: here are 15 of the 16 players and head coach of the 2nd ever Boston Celtics team. Ed Sadowski was a 1947-48 1st team All-BAA, averaging 19.4ppg. I'm still in search of a signature of Charlie Hoefer. pic.twitter.com/2awYMPRYz5
— Celticsupercollector (@CeltiCollector) February 15, 2022
In 1948 on this date, the team traded center Ed Sadowski to the (then) Philadelphia (now, Golden State) Warriors for Hank Beenders and Chick Halbert.
Sadowski had joined the team the previous July when Boston picked him up from the Cleveland Rebels dispersal draft. The Seton Hall alum played 47 games with the Celtics, averaging 19.4 points and 1.6 assists per game (rebounds had yet to be recorded).
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