Celtics Trivia Game (2024)

DavorFanCroatia · Post #161 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 12:24 pm

I think it was KC Jones, Sam Jones, Tom Sanders, Bill Russell and Willie Naulls instead of injured Tom Heinsohn...

radcot · Post #162 » by **radcot** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 12:36 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:I think it was KC Jones, Sam Jones, Tom Sanders, Bill Russell and Willie Naulls instead of injured Tom Heinsohn...

True, Naulls is the one most people can't come up with (but you clearly are not "most people"!)

DavorFanCroatia · Post #163 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 12:47 pm

This former Celtics teammates won championchips as Celtics players and later won a ring together as head coach and assistant coach. Who are they?

Fencer reregistered · Post #164 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 4:06 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:
Fencer reregistered wrote:Speaking of executives, Davor, my favorite basketball trivia question, and one that I've already asked in this forum a couple of times, is:

Which NBA executive renounced himself as a free agent?

The answer is NOT a Celtic.

Excellent question... I really dont know the answer...
Joe Dumars maybe?

You got it!

Fencer reregistered · Post #165 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 4:07 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:I think it was KC Jones, Sam Jones, Tom Sanders, Bill Russell and Willie Naulls instead of injured Tom Heinsohn...

Beat me to it! I vaguely recalled having heard that Willie Naulls was one of them, so it as a bit more than a guess.

The other four were pretty obvious.

Fencer reregistered · Post #166 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 4:08 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:Hay. Legend and Danny obviously... I believe Wayne Embry, Russell backup on '68 title team did it twice or three times...making Halle of Fame as contibutor...

As usual, you got it!

Fencer reregistered · Post #167 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 4:13 pm

Ed Pinkney wrote: I can't think of any other Celtics players who were even Executive, let alone who would have won the award.

New question, then:

Besides Ainge, Bird and Embry, who have already been mentioned, who are the other ex-Celtics players who were a team's GM, president, VP of basketball operations, or otherwise a GM-like executive?

I phrase it that way because I have no hope personally of knowing a guy's exact title, and also to admit of the possibility of having two guys that senior in an organization at the same time.

I can think of at least three answers (not nearly as distinguished in the executive rule as the first three). I would guess there are more.

DavorFanCroatia · Post #168 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 4:54 pm

Lets see...McHale on T-Wolves...Don Nelson on several teams...MC Carr on Celtics dark age...
I think Jim Paxson was GM on LeBrons first Cavs tour. Bill Russell on some West teams (Sonics and Kings i believe) on late 70's.
If i remember when we played Hawks in 2008 their GM was Billy Knight who briefly played for Celtics in late 70's...
I'm i forgeting someone?

Fencer reregistered · Post #169 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 5:08 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:Lets see...McHale on T-Wolves...Don Nelson on several teams...MC Carr on Celtics dark age...
I think Jim Paxson was GM on LeBrons first Cavs tour. Bill Russell on some West teams (Sonics and Kings i believe) on late 70's.
If i remember when we played Hawks in 2008 their GM was Billy Knight who briefly played for Celtics in late 70's...
I'm i forgeting someone?

You got all the ones I'm thinking of, and more. What a surprise -- not! But this is the first I heard about Russell being an exec on the teams he coached.

Fencer reregistered · Post #170 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 5:15 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:This former Celtics teammates won championchips as Celtics players and later won a ring together as head coach and assistant coach. Who are they?

My first guess is Sharman and somebody, even though they had few assistant coaches in those days. If anybody would have had an assistant coach, it would have been him; he was an innovator.

DavorFanCroatia · Post #171 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 5:38 pm

You are right. On 1972 Lakers championchips team Sharmans asistent was KC Jones.
Tehnically, KC Jones has more rings then Russell...8 as player (1959-66), 2 as head coach (1984,86) and 2 as assistent coach (1972,81).
Can i have one Croatia related question?
I believe all of you know that Pats coach Bill Belichik has croatian roots. But did you know that Minneapolis legend George Mikan's parents were Croatian? Same as Rockets legend Rudy Tomjanovich and Bullets all-star Jack Marin.
Mother of two Celtics legends were Croats. Can you name it?
Little help: Pete Maravich isn't the answer...Pistol got Serbian roots

Fencer reregistered · Post #172 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 6:12 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:You are right. On 1972 Lakers championchips team Sharmans asistent was KC Jones.
Tehnically, KC Jones has more rings then Russell...8 as player (1959-66), 2 as head coach (1984,86) and 2 as assistent coach (1972,81).
Can i have one Croatia related question?
I believe all of you know that Pats coach Bill Belichik has croatian roots. But did you know that Minneapolis legend George Mikan's parents were Croatian? Same as Rockets legend Rudy Tomjanovich and Bullets all-star Jack Marin.
Mother of two Celtics legends were Croats. Can you name it?
Little help: Pete Maravich isn't the answer...Pistol got Serbian roots

Havlicek is one -- he was my first guess, and I looked him up to confirm.

Fencer reregistered · Post #173 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 6:14 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:You are right. On 1972 Lakers championchips team Sharmans asistent was KC Jones.
Tehnically, KC Jones has more rings then Russell...8 as player (1959-66), 2 as head coach (1984,86) and 2 as assistent coach (1972,81).
Can i have one Croatia related question?
I believe all of you know that Pats coach Bill Belichik has croatian roots. But did you know that Minneapolis legend George Mikan's parents were Croatian? Same as Rockets legend Rudy Tomjanovich and Bullets all-star Jack Marin.
Mother of two Celtics legends were Croats. Can you name it?
Little help: Pete Maravich isn't the answer...Pistol got Serbian roots

I assume you're not counting Dino Radja.

DavorFanCroatia · Post #174 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 6:23 pm

Right on Hondo.
No, i didn't mean Dino, who is btw one of only 4 NBA players i meet and took picture with (other three were Gordan Giricek ,Mario Kasun and former Celtic Stojko Vrankovic).
I'm waiting for second Celtics legend whose mother were Croat...

Fencer reregistered · Post #175 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 6:57 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:Right on Hondo.
No, i didn't mean Dino, who is btw one of only 4 NBA players i meet and took picture with (other three were Gordan Giricek ,Mario Kasun and former Celtic Stojko Vrankovic).
I'm waiting for second Celtics legend whose mother were Croat...

Nobody comes to mind who would be more than a wild guess, made only because you said there's an answer. None of the black guys seem to fit. Walton and Bird seem pretty Anglo-Saxon. Ditto Cowens. Cousy is French. Heinsohn's name is German and he's from New Jersey, but he also looks and drinks like he has some Irish in him. McHale's name is Irish or Scottish, and went to college in Minnesota, where there are a lot of Scandinavian immigrants. But there also are Eastern Europeans in the northern Midwest, and McHale sort of looks the part.

I'll go look up McHale as a second guess ...

... and googling on "Kevin McHale mother" indeed turns up a Serbo-Croatian style name.

DavorFanCroatia · Post #176 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 7:14 pm

Yes. McHale father was Irish, mother Croat. Kevin's grandpa and grandma came to USA from a little village nearby Split.
When i wrote a article about Kevin for Croatian basketball magazine "Super Košarka" i found Kevin's quote: "I have croatian blood. In my grandma house croatian was the only language. Unfortunatly i didn't remember much".

DavorFanCroatia · Post #177 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 7:16 pm

There were four Croat who played for Celtics. First was Stojko Vrankovic. Best was Dino Radja. Who are the other two?

Fencer reregistered · Post #178 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 7:43 pm

DavorFanCroatia wrote:There were four Croat who played for Celtics. First was Stojko Vrankovic. Best was Dino Radja. Who are the other two?

Hard one. I have no memory of who was a Serb vs. who was a Croat, etc.

Fencer reregistered · Post #179 » by **Fencer reregistered** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 8:31 pm

Here's another one, Davor, that isn't about the Celtics. But I remember it since I grew up in Los Angeles:

What happened immediately before the start of the Lakers' 33-game winning streak?

DavorFanCroatia · Post #180 » by **DavorFanCroatia** » Wed Feb 18, 2015 8:33 pm

Little help: Nenad Krstic and Darko Milicic were Serb and Sasha Pavlovic Montenegro.