10 players that played for both the Lakers and the Celtics
9. Don Nelson
Yeah, that’s right. THE Don Nelson has played for both these historic franchises, only adding to his endless list of impressive accomplishments.
Nelson, who was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame with the class of 2012, is mostly known for his colossal resume as a head coach. Very few remember him as a player, none of which could recollect him wearing a Lakers jersey.
Don was brought in at a young age into a very stacked Lakers team that had championship potential. As a result, his minutes would be limited, especially when you weigh in the fact that he played the same position as Elgin Baylor, who was considered by many as the best player in the league.
And now, prepare yourselves, for a HUGE Kevin Durant move. After losing in the 1965 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics, Nelson would then sign as a free agent for Boston.
In the season that followed, Nelson and the Celtics would, once again, defeat the Los Angeles Lakers in the finals, a result that would replicate itself in 1968 and in 1969. This is, of course, not comparable to Durant’s move at all, given that Nelson was just a role player.
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I was today years old when I learned Gregg Popovich was once an assistant coach to Don Nelson for GS pic.twitter.com/8GRytIlks1
— Pat Benson (@Pat_Benson_Jr) March 23, 2020
After retiring from the NBA, Nelson would have an okay coaching career and is now holding the record for the most wins as a head coach in NBA history, at 1,335. He would also win the Coach of the Year award a total of three times.
During his legendary coaching career, he would lead some incredible players to the playoffs, though he failed to win a championship with any of them. Those include Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Oscar Robertson, Patrick Ewing, Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash and Chris Mullin.