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'''John J. "Hondo" Havlicek''' (born April 8, 1940 in Martins Ferry, Ohio) is a retired American professional basketball player who competed for 16 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning eight NBA titles, half of them coming in his first four seasons.
  
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|+ colspan="2" style="text-align: center; font-size: 125%; color:#000000; background-color:#ffffff"|'''{{PAGENAME}}'''
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|-
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{{Blank team color}} Personal information
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|-
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| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''Born'''
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|April 8, 1940<br>{{wikipedia}}Martins_Ferry,_Ohio Martins Ferry, Ohio]
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|-
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| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''Died'''
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|April 25, 2019 (aged 79) <br>{{wikipedia}}Jupiter,_Florida Jupiter, Florida]
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|-
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{{Row}}'''Nationality'''
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|American
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|-
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{{Blank team color}}Physical stats
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|-
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| colspan="1" style="text-align: left;"|'''Listed height: '''
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|6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
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|-
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| colspan="1" style="text-align: left;"|'''Listed weight: '''
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|203 lbs (92 kg)
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|-
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{{Blank team color}} Career information
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|-
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| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''High school'''
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| Bridgeport<br>(Bridgeport, Ohio)
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|-
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| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''College'''
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| [[Ohio State Buckeyes|Ohio State]] (1959–1962)
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|-
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| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''NBA Draft'''
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|[[1962 NBA Draft|1962]] / Round: 1 / Pick: 7th
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|-
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| colspan="2" style="text-align: center;"|Selected by the [[Boston Celtics]]
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|-
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| style="vertical-align: top;"|'''Playing career'''
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|1962–1978 ({{age|1962|1|1|1978|1|1}} years)
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|-
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{{Row}}'''Position'''
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| [[Small Forward]] / [[Shooting Guard]]
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|-
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{{Row}}'''Jersey no.'''
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|17
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|-
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{{Blank team color}} Career history
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|-
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| colspan="2" style="text-align: left;"|
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|-
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|[[1962-63 NBA season|1962]]–[[1977-78 NBA season|1978]]
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|[[Boston Celtics]]
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|-
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{{Blank team color}} Career highlights and awards
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|-
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| colspan="2" style="text-align: left;"|
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*8× [[List of NBA champions|NBA champion]] ([[1963 NBA Finals|1963]]–[[1966 NBA Finals|1966]], [[1968 NBA Finals|1968]], [[1969 NBA Finals|1969]], [[1974 NBA Finals|1974]], [[1976 NBA Finals|1976]])
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*[[NBA Finals MVP]] ([[1974 NBA Finals|1974]])
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*13× [[NBA All-Star]] ([[1966 NBA All-Star Game|1966]]–[[1978 NBA All-Star Game|1978]])
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*4× All-NBA First Team (1971–1974)
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*7× All-NBA Second Team (1964, 1966, 1968–1970, 1975, 1976)
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*5× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1972–1976)
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*3× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1969–1971)
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*NBA All-Rookie First Team (1963)
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*No. 17 [[Boston Celtics#Retired numbers|retired by the Boston Celtics]]
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*NBA 35th Anniversary Team
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*NBA 50th Anniversary Team
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*NCAA champion (1960)
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*Consensus second-team All-American (1962)
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*Third-team All-American – AP (1961)
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*No. 5 retired by [[Ohio State Buckeyes]]
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|-
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|}
   
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'''John Joseph Havlicek''' (April 8, 1940 - April 25, 2019) was an American professional basketball player who played his entire 16-year [[National Basketball Association]] (NBA) career with the [[Boston Celtics]], winning eight NBA championships, four of them coming in his first four seasons with the team. Nicknamed "'''Hondo'''" (inspired by the 1953 movie of the same name starring John Wayne), Havlicek revolutionized the "sixth man" role.
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In the NBA, only teammates Bill Russell and Sam Jones won more championships during their playing careers. Havlicek is considered one of the best NBA players in history, especially on defense, and was inducted as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1984. He was a three sport star at Bridgeport High School in Bridgeport, Ohio and one of his boyhood friends was Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro.
  
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  ⚫
In the National Basketball Association, he is one of four players to have won eight championships in their playing careers; only teammates [[Bill Russell]] and [[Sam Jones]] have won more, with 11 and 10 championships respectively. Havlicek is also one of three NBA players with an unsurpassed 8–0 record in NBA Finals series outcomes. Havlicek is widely considered to have been one of the greatest players in the history of the game and was inducted as a member of the [[Basketball Hall of Fame|Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame]] in 1984. He was a three-sport athlete at Bridgeport High School in Bridgeport, Ohio.
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He has been immortalized for his clutch steal in the closing seconds of the 1965 Eastern Conference championship. In the seventh and final game, played at [[Boston Garden]] on April 15, 1965, the Celtics led the [[Philadelphia 76ers]] 110–109 with five seconds left, and only needed to inbound the ball underneath their basket to secure the victory and advance to the [[1965 NBA Finals]]; however, [[Bill Russell]]'s pass struck a wire which was hanging down from the ceiling and helping to support the baskets, the turnover then giving the 76ers and [[Wilt Chamberlain]] the ball and a chance to win the game and the series. [[Hal Greer]] was set to throw the inbounds pass for the 76ers. Havlicek stood with his back to Greer, guarding [[Chet Walker]]. But as Greer's pass came inbounds, Havlicek spun, leaped, and tipped the pass to [[Sam Jones]]. Veteran referee Earl Strom, who wrote this game action in his memoir Calling the Shots, called Havlicek's reaction one of the greatest plays he ever saw in his 32 years as a professional official. Announcer [[Johnny Most]]'s call of "'''Havlicek stole the ball!'''" was dubbed by the NBA as "the most famous radio call in basketball history.
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Havlicek died on April 25, 2019, in Jupiter, Florida, seventeen days after his 79th birthday, after a long bout with Parkinson’s Disease.
   
 
==See also==
  
==See also==
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*[[/Magazine covers|Magazine covers]]
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*[[John Havlicek/Magazine covers|Magazine covers]]
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{{DEFAULTSORT: Havlicek, John}}
   
 
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[[Category:Former National Basketball Association players]]
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[[Category:National Basketball Association players]]
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[[Category:Former Boston Celtics players]]
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[[Category:Boston Celtics players]]
 
[[Category:Players who wear/wore number 17]]
  
[[Category:Players who wear/wore number 17]]
 
[[Category:Players who won the NBA Championship]]
  
[[Category:Players who won the NBA Championship]]
 
[[Category:NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award Winners]]
  
[[Category:NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award Winners]]
 
[[Category:Retired]]
  
[[Category:Retired]]
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[[Category:American basketball players]]
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[[Category:New York Knicks head coaches]]

Revision as of 02:48, 19 June 2020

John Havlicek
Personal information
Born April 8, 1940
This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).
Martins_Ferry,_Ohio Martins Ferry, Ohio]
Died April 25, 2019 (aged 79)
This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).
Jupiter,_Florida Jupiter, Florida]
Nationality American
Physical stats
Listed height: 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight: 203 lbs (92 kg)
Career information
High school Bridgeport
(Bridgeport, Ohio)
College Ohio State (1959–1962)
NBA Draft 1962 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7th
Selected by the Boston Celtics
Playing career 1962–1978 (16 years)
Position Small Forward / Shooting Guard
Jersey no. 17
Career history
1962–1978 Boston Celtics
Career highlights and awards

John Joseph Havlicek (April 8, 1940 - April 25, 2019) was an American professional basketball player who played his entire 16-year National Basketball Association (NBA) career with the Boston Celtics, winning eight NBA championships, four of them coming in his first four seasons with the team. Nicknamed "Hondo" (inspired by the 1953 movie of the same name starring John Wayne), Havlicek revolutionized the "sixth man" role.

In the National Basketball Association, he is one of four players to have won eight championships in their playing careers; only teammates Bill Russell and Sam Jones have won more, with 11 and 10 championships respectively. Havlicek is also one of three NBA players with an unsurpassed 8–0 record in NBA Finals series outcomes. Havlicek is widely considered to have been one of the greatest players in the history of the game and was inducted as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1984. He was a three-sport athlete at Bridgeport High School in Bridgeport, Ohio.

He has been immortalized for his clutch steal in the closing seconds of the 1965 Eastern Conference championship. In the seventh and final game, played at Boston Garden on April 15, 1965, the Celtics led the Philadelphia 76ers 110–109 with five seconds left, and only needed to inbound the ball underneath their basket to secure the victory and advance to the 1965 NBA Finals; however, Bill Russell's pass struck a wire which was hanging down from the ceiling and helping to support the baskets, the turnover then giving the 76ers and Wilt Chamberlain the ball and a chance to win the game and the series. Hal Greer was set to throw the inbounds pass for the 76ers. Havlicek stood with his back to Greer, guarding Chet Walker. But as Greer's pass came inbounds, Havlicek spun, leaped, and tipped the pass to Sam Jones. Veteran referee Earl Strom, who wrote this game action in his memoir Calling the Shots, called Havlicek's reaction one of the greatest plays he ever saw in his 32 years as a professional official. Announcer Johnny Most's call of "Havlicek stole the ball!" was dubbed by the NBA as "the most famous radio call in basketball history.

Havlicek died on April 25, 2019, in Jupiter, Florida, seventeen days after his 79th birthday, after a long bout with Parkinson’s Disease.

See also


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