Red Auerbach

Harry Mangurian was a big man with the ponies. I really had no idea just how big until he died last Sunday and the tributes came pouring in. I guess all you need to know is that he won the 2001 Eclipse Award of Merit for his lifetime contributions to the sport of thoroughbred racing. I learned how he was the leading North American breeder by earnings four consecutive years (1999-2002), that he was the leading breeder by individual stakes winners from 1999-2001, and that he was twice recognized as the national Breeder of the Year (1998, 2000)

Is 14-2 inevitable? I remember walking out of Qualcomm Stadium after the Chargers had gift-wrapped, complete with a charming red bow, a game for the Patriots. This was only three weeks after the Dolphins likewise had been conspicuous conspirators in their own demise, and I was left with just one conclusion about the 2010 New England Patriots. “Holy Hannah,’’ I said to myself. “They’re going to lurch their way to 12-4!’’ Turns out I was kinda, sorta half right.

We were so lucky. We had Red Auerbach for nearly 57 NBA seasons. We had his genius, his rough, old-school charm, and his Brooklyn-learned street smarts. And we lost him yesterday. At the age of 89. Just four days before the start of another Celtics season. Red was the Celtics. Sure, we had Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, Larry Bird, and the rest. But Red was the Celtics. He delivered 16 championships to our town. We never could pay back all the pride and glory he brought to Boston.

During one 11-year period in his reign over the New York Yankees, George Steinbrenner fired his manager 12 times, setting what Peter Golenbock calls “a record for destructive, frivolous management.’’ Steinbrenner’s trespasses not directly related to Billy Martin et al set no records, because lots of businessmen lie to their employees, make illegal campaign contributions, stonewall the authorities, and hire private investigators to smear...

WALTHAM -- He is an 87-year-old man with a cane and a cigar, and the clout of a king. Red Auerbach is in the house, holding court, and the Celtics' four rookies hang on every word. The combined ages of Al Jefferson, Delonte West, Tony Allen, and Justin Reed do not even add up to 87 years. They are so green that West asked team officials if he still gets paid now that he's on the injured list. These Celtics may be young and hip and rich and spoiled too cool for school, but they know a legend when they see one. It is Dec. 3, the day of a game against the Toronto Raptors, and they have been invited to lunch...

Friends of Red Auerbach expressed concern yesterday over the health of the soon-to-be 88-year-old Celtics patriarch, who is hospitalized in Washington. Celtics spokesman Jeff Twiss said last night that Auerbach had been "in and out" of the hospital for the past month or so for tests and a surgical procedure, which went well. Auerbach was readmitted to the hospital within the last 10 days for his most recent problem, Twiss said. It has been in that span that concerns about his condition prompted friends to call the Globe.

Is 14-2 inevitable? I remember walking out of Qualcomm Stadium after the Chargers had gift-wrapped, complete with a charming red bow, a game for the Patriots. This was only three weeks after the Dolphins likewise had been conspicuous conspirators in their own demise, and I was left with just one conclusion about the 2010 New England Patriots. “Holy Hannah,’’ I said to myself. “They’re going to lurch their way to 12-4!’’ Turns out I was kinda, sorta half right.

There were legendary Celtics sitting in the stands, with names like Russell, Havlicek, Heinsohn, Maxwell, Ainge, and White, who could all tell stories about the days when they touched the NBA championship trophy, sprayed champagne on each other, and watched Red Auerbach proudly puff on a victory cigar. After a 22-year wait that included the retirement of Larry Bird, lots of lean years, and the death of Auerbach, the Celtics have new legends named Pierce, Allen, and Garnett, who now can tell their stories about touching the trophy, spraying champagne, and wishing Red were here to witness it. ...

Before there were Oscar and Isiah and Magic, there was Cooz. Before there were $100 million endorsements for high schoolers, before the NBA turned into a smackdown in short pants, there was Bob Cousy, the Houdini of the Hardwood. "He was the first modern player, the flashy playmaker, the first improviser, the first player to look inside the boundaries of a basketball court and see endless possibilities, jazz musician as point guard," Bill Reynolds writes in "Cousy," his revealing retrospective of the man who changed the rhythms of a game that once was played inside a...

The patient was sicker than we thought. He would not reveal that in public, of course, because he was a proud man, a surprisingly private one, too, for someone who was so immediately recognizable and so candid during his long and wildly successful life. Let's be honest: Red Auerbach wasn't too big on revealing his weaknesses. When the new doctor first examined Auerbach, he wondered how managing this patient would work. He suspected it would take up a considerable amount of his time.

RED AND ME: My Coach, My Lifelong Friend By Bill Russell With Alan Steinberg Harper, 208 pp., $24.99 "We are not particularly friends," wrote Bill Russell about Red Auerbach in his 1966 memoir "Go Up for Glory. " In clipped and bitter language, Russell described them both as moody, driven loners. He recalled snapping back at his coach's bossy directives. "As far as Auerbach's attitude towards Negroes," he added, "I feel in all honesty that he can be characterized as a middle-of-the-roader," a supporter of racial justice only insofar as it benefited the Boston Celtics.

Harry Mangurian was a big man with the ponies. I really had no idea just how big until he died last Sunday and the tributes came pouring in. I guess all you need to know is that he won the 2001 Eclipse Award of Merit for his lifetime contributions to the sport of thoroughbred racing. I learned how he was the leading North American breeder by earnings four consecutive years (1999-2002), that he was the leading breeder by individual stakes winners from 1999-2001, and that he was twice recognized as the national Breeder of the Year (1998, 2000)

There were legendary Celtics sitting in the stands, with names like Russell, Havlicek, Heinsohn, Maxwell, Ainge, and White, who could all tell stories about the days when they touched the NBA championship trophy, sprayed champagne on each other, and watched Red Auerbach proudly puff on a victory cigar. After a 22-year wait that included the retirement of Larry Bird, lots of lean years, and the death of Auerbach, the Celtics have new legends named Pierce, Allen, and Garnett, who now can tell their stories about touching the trophy, spraying champagne, and wishing Red were here to witness it. ...

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. - Phil Jackson leans forward and lowers his gravelly baritone to a whisper. "The ghost of Red Auerbach is present," he says. "It's very present. " Jackson stands upright again, raises his eyebrows in an all-knowing way, and looks around the Lakers' practice facility. As a player in the Celtics-Knicks rivalry of the early 1970s, Jackson learned to never underestimate the competitiveness and cunning of Auerbach. He expected "shenanigans" in Boston. He knew Auerbach "always had something up his sleeve.

The patient was sicker than we thought. He would not reveal that in public, of course, because he was a proud man, a surprisingly private one, too, for someone who was so immediately recognizable and so candid during his long and wildly successful life. Let's be honest: Red Auerbach wasn't too big on revealing his weaknesses. When the new doctor first examined Auerbach, he wondered how managing this patient would work. He suspected it would take up a considerable amount of his time.

We were so lucky. We had Red Auerbach for nearly 57 NBA seasons. We had his genius, his rough, old-school charm, and his Brooklyn-learned street smarts. And we lost him yesterday. At the age of 89. Just four days before the start of another Celtics season. Red was the Celtics. Sure, we had Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, Larry Bird, and the rest. But Red was the Celtics. He delivered 16 championships to our town. We never could pay back all the pride and glory he brought to Boston.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. - Phil Jackson leans forward and lowers his gravelly baritone to a whisper. "The ghost of Red Auerbach is present," he says. "It's very present. " Jackson stands upright again, raises his eyebrows in an all-knowing way, and looks around the Lakers' practice facility. As a player in the Celtics-Knicks rivalry of the early 1970s, Jackson learned to never underestimate the competitiveness and cunning of Auerbach. He expected "shenanigans" in Boston. He knew Auerbach "always had something up his sleeve.

During one 11-year period in his reign over the New York Yankees, George Steinbrenner fired his manager 12 times, setting what Peter Golenbock calls “a record for destructive, frivolous management.’’ Steinbrenner’s trespasses not directly related to Billy Martin et al set no records, because lots of businessmen lie to their employees, make illegal campaign contributions, stonewall the authorities, and hire private investigators to smear...

Friends of Red Auerbach expressed concern yesterday over the health of the soon-to-be 88-year-old Celtics patriarch, who is hospitalized in Washington. Celtics spokesman Jeff Twiss said last night that Auerbach had been "in and out" of the hospital for the past month or so for tests and a surgical procedure, which went well. Auerbach was readmitted to the hospital within the last 10 days for his most recent problem, Twiss said. It has been in that span that concerns about his condition prompted friends to call the Globe.

Before there were Oscar and Isiah and Magic, there was Cooz. Before there were $100 million endorsements for high schoolers, before the NBA turned into a smackdown in short pants, there was Bob Cousy, the Houdini of the Hardwood. "He was the first modern player, the flashy playmaker, the first improviser, the first player to look inside the boundaries of a basketball court and see endless possibilities, jazz musician as point guard," Bill Reynolds writes in "Cousy," his revealing retrospective of the man who changed the rhythms of a game that once was played inside a cage.