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Boston Celtics: 25 Best Players To Play For The Celtics

By Phil Watson

Apr 24, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; A general view of TD Garden prior to the first round of the NBA Playoffs between the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 24, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; A general view of TD Garden prior to the first round of the NBA Playoffs between the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports /
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UNITED STATES - MAY 23: Basketball: NBA Finals, Boston Celtics Don Nelson (19) in action, layup vs Phoenix Suns, Boston, MA 5/23/1976--6/4/1976 (Photo by Manny Millan/Sports Illustrated/Getty Images) (SetNumber: X20559)
UNITED STATES – MAY 23: Basketball: NBA Finals, Boston Celtics Don Nelson (19) in action, layup vs Phoenix Suns, Boston, MA 5/23/1976–6/4/1976 (Photo by Manny Millan/Sports Illustrated/Getty Images) (SetNumber: X20559) /

24. player. 18. <strong> How Acquired: </strong>Free agent, Oct. 28, 1965. SF-PF. 1965-76. Don Nelson

Combo forward Don Nelson’s career was on the NBA’s scrap heap when he signed as a free agent with the Boston Celtics in October 1965.

Five NBA championships later, Nelson more than rewarded the faith Red Auerbach placed in him after he had been waived by the Los Angeles Lakers.

BOS_24_NELSON
BOS_24_NELSON /

Nelson led the NBA in field-goal percentage with a .539 mark in 1974-75 and went five straight seasons, 1967-68 through 1971-72, without missing a game.

He remained with the Celtics for the remainder of his career, retiring after the 1975-76 season, going out a champion as a reserve on Boston’s 1976 title squad.

In 11 seasons with the Celtics, Nelson averaged 11.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 21.8 minutes per game, shooting 48.4 percent from the floor and 76.9 percent from the foul line.

An All-American as a senior at Iowa after averaging 23.8 points and 11.9 rebounds per game, Nelson was drafted in the third round out of Iowa by the Chicago Zephyrs in the 1962 NBA Draft.

Nelson played one season in Chicago before he was claimed off waivers by the Lakers in September 1963.

That was just phase one of his career in the NBA.

Hired as an assistant coach by the Milwaukee Bucks just weeks after he retired, Nelson became head coach and general manager (director of player personnel) of the franchise 18 games into the 1976-77 season and coached parts of 11 seasons with the Bucks.

From there, he spent parts of seven years with the Golden State Warriors, part of a season coaching the New York Knicks, eight seasons with the Dallas Mavericks and finished with another four years with the Warriors.

He was a three-time Coach of the Year and was named one of the top 10 coaches in NBA history during the league’s 50th anniversary celebration in 1996.

With 1,335 regular-season wins, Nelson is the winningest coach in NBA history, but his teams never reached an NBA Finals.

He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a coach in 2012.

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