On this day in Boston Celtics history, the storied franchise played the first game of its storied history in 1946 as it kicked off play in the brand-new Basketball Association of America, which became the National Basketball Association in 1949).
That first contest was not an auspicious one. The Celtics dropped their inaugural game to the (now defunct) Providence Steamrollers, 59-53. Boston fell to 0-1 to start the 1946-47 BAA season on a sour note that offered no hints of the many wins to come. It was of course the Celtics’ debut for the entire team, but in that era, sparse counting stat records were kept — or even conceived of.
With that in mind, let’s review the details we do have.
Red Wallace led all scorers with 9 points, Virgil Vaughn and Warren Fenley both had 8 points and the future “Rifleman” star Chuck Connors had 7 more to round out the game’s top scorers for the Celtics.
Connie Simmons had 6 points, his brother Johnny had 4, Wyndol Gray 5 points, while Al Brightman, Tony Kappen, and Art Spector each had 2 points. Mel Hirsch was the sole Celtic to go scoreless. It was also head coach John Russell’s first game as the inaugural coach to hold the position.
On this day in 1990, former Celtic guard DeCovan Kadell — better known as Dee — Brown debuted for the team that took him 19th overall in that year’s NBA draft out of Florida’s Jacksonville University, his hometown team.
Brown’s first game in green and white came in a 125-101 blowout of the Cleveland Cavaliers and saw him play 22 minutes of game time with 4 turnovers and 3 fouls.
It was also the day former Celtics center Semih Erden debuted for the team exactly two decades to the day in 2010. The Turkish big man played his first game for Boston in a 109-84 blowout of the Detroit Pistons in which he logged just inside 15-and-a-half minutes of floor time, turning the ball over once and fouling 3 times.
Erden scored 2 points on a single shot attempt, grabbed 3 boards, made an assist, and blocked 3 shots for a decent first game with the Celtics.
Five years earlier, former Boston forward Ryan Gomes debuted; his first game with the Celtics was a 114-100 win over the New York Knicks.
The Providence College product put up 2 points — on a single shot attempt — and 3 rebounds in just under nine minutes of play, turning the ball over once with zero fouls.
That game also was guard Orien Greene’s debut for Boston. He logged 2 points on a single shot attempt and a single rebound and assist each.
The one-time Louisiana-Lafayette player did it in just under 11 minutes of floor time, with 1 turnover and 2 fouls.
Celtic champion center Glen Davis debuted for this team in 2007 in a 103-83 thrashing of the Washington Wizards.
The former LSU player didn’t play much in it though, recording only two minutes and 30 seconds of game time in which he logged a single assist and a foul.
Big man Luke Harangody made his debut for Boston on this date in 2010, in a 109-86 blowout of the Detroit Pistons.
The Notre Dame product would score 4 points in just over 3 minutes of game time for a decent first game with the Celtics.
Two years later, former Syracuse forward Kris Joseph debuted for Boston in a 99-88 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Montreal native registered a single assist and rebound each in just under 3 minutes of floor time.
On this date in 1999, wing Adrian Griffin played his first contest for the Celtics in a 103-90 road win over the Toronto Raptors.
The Seton Hall product had a deceptively strong debut, logging 14 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks in just under 28 minutes of game time.
Two years before that, forward Dontae’ Jones played his first for the Celtics in a 107-96 loss to the Orlando Magic.
The Nashville native logged 4 points, a steal, and a block in 10 and a half minutes of game time.
Happy birthday in heaven Hal Crisler. Boston Celtics NBA. Boston Yanks NFL. pic.twitter.com/UOFs8zSleP
— Honest☘️Larry (@HonestLarry1) December 31, 2020
Finally, it is also the date of Celtics forward Hal Crisler’s passing in 1987.
The Iowa State alumnus joined the team for a four-game stint in its inaugural season, closing our loop for today with a career average of 1.5 points per game with Boston.
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