Bill Russell: Legend

Shut Up and Dribble

Basketball: A Love Story

Mr. Russell's House

Long Shots: The Life and Times of the American Basketball Association

Winning Basketball

Amazing Grace and Chuck

The White Shadow

Boston Celtics: Home of the Brave

Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach (September 20, 1917 – October 28, 2006) was an American professional basketball coach and executive. He served as a head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA), most notably with the Boston Celtics. Auerbach also served as the head coach of the Washington Capitols and Tri-Cities Blackhawks. As a coach, Auerbach set NBA records with 938 wins and nine championships. After his coaching retirement in 1966, he served as president and front-office executive of the Boston Celtics until his death. As general manager and team president of the Celtics, he won an additional seven NBA titles for a total of 16 in 29 years, the most of any individual in NBA history, making him one of the most successful team officials in the history of North American professional sports.
Auerbach introduced the fast break technique as an offensive tool. He coached numerous players who went on to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Auerbach also had a role in combatting racial discrimination in the NBA. He made history by drafting the first African-American NBA player, Chuck Cooper, introducing the first African-American starting five,and hiring Bill Russell to be the first African-American head coach in North American sports in 1966. Auerbach was also well known for smoking a cigar when he thought a victory was assured, a habit that came to be known as "the ultimate symbol of victory" during his tenure in Boston.
In 1967, the NBA Coach of the Year award, which he won in 1965, was renamed the "Red Auerbach Trophy." Auerbach was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1969. In 1970, Auerbach was named president of the Celtics and first held the presidency from 1970 to 1997. In 2001, after spending four years as the team's vice-chairman, he returned to the role of team president and served in that capacity until his death in 2006 at the age of 89. In 1980, he was named the greatest coach in the history of the NBA by the Professional Basketball Writers Association of America; and was NBA Executive of the Year in 1980. In addition, Auerbach was voted one of the NBA 10 Greatest Coaches in history, inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, and honored with a retired number 2 jersey at TD Garden, the Celtics home.



Red Auerbach