1973-1974 Boston Celtics: The Heinsohn Era

1973-1974 Boston Celtics: The Heinsohn Era

1973-1974 Boston Celtics: The Heinsohn Era

Although the 1970’s wasn’t the best decade of basketball for the Boston Celtics, they still managed to provide some excitement for Boston sports fans as head coach Tom Heinsohn was early into his reign, teaching players how to execute and win. Heinsohn had been a power forward and center for the Celtics of the 1950’s and 1960’s decades.

Going 56-26 in the 1973-1974 regular season, the Boston Celtics finished in 1st place in the Atlantic division and 1st place in the Eastern Conference, finishing 7 games ahead of the New York Knicks. Small forward John Havlicek led the way for the Celtics as he had 1,716 total points, 487 rebounds, 447 assists and 95 steals along with a .832 free throw percentage. Havlicek averaged 22.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

Center Dave Cowens had 1,518 total points, 354 assists, 95 steals and 101 blocks. Cowens grabbed an astonishing 1,257 rebounds with 993 of them being defensive rebounds, and he averaged 19 points, 15.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. Point guard Jo Jo White had 1,488 total points, 448 assists and 105 steals, averaging 18.1 points, 5.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Power forward Paul Silas had 944 total points and 915 rebounds, averaging 11.5 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. Small forward Don Nelson had 943 total points and averaged 11.5 points per game.

The Celtics faced the Buffalo Braves in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, and the Celtics would eliminate the Braves 4 games to 2. For a per game average in the series, John Havlicek scored 25.7 points, Dave Cowens scored 19.2 points, Jo Jo White scored 17.7 points and Don Nelson scored 15.5 points.

The Celtics won Game 1 on March 30 by the score of 107-97 at the Boston Garden. Cowens had 30 points, White had 24 points and Nelson had 21 points while Buffalo center and power forward Bob McAdoo had 29 points. In Game 2 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, the Braves responded with a 115-105 win on April 2. White had 27 points for Boston while Nelson had 21 points and Havlicek had 20 points. McAdoo had 23 points for Buffalo while power forward Gar Heard had 22 points and small forward Jim McMillian had 20 points.

In Game 3 on April 3 the Celtics rebounded with a 120-107 win. Havlicek exploded on the court with 43 points while Cowens had 23 points. McAdoo was amazing for Buffalo as he had 38 points in a valiant losing effort. In game 4 on April 6 the Braves pulled out a narrow 104-102 win. Though Nelson had 24 points and Havlicek had 22 points for the Celtics, McAdoo was sensational for the Braves as he scored 44 points. Boston would return the favor by pulling out a narrow 100-97 win in Game 5 on April 9. Havlicek had 25 points, White had 20 points and Cowens had 19 points. Buffalo shooting guard and small forward Randy Smith had 25 points while McMillian had 18 points.

In Game 6 on April 12, the Celtics closed the door on the Braves with a 106-104 victory. Havlicek had 30 points and White had 18 points for Boston. McAdoo had a great game for Buffalo by scoring 40 points while Gar Heard and point guard Ernie DiGregorio each had 20 points.

The Celtics would then face the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Celtics would prevail in 5 games. For a per game average in the series, John Havlicek scored 29.6 points, Dave Cowens scored 19 points, Jo Jo White scored 15.2 points and Don Nelson scored 15 points. The Knicks had point guard Walt Frazier’s reliable ball handling skills to keep them in the series as he averaged 24.6 points.

The Celtics would win Game 1 113-8 at the Boston Garden on April 14. Havlicek had 25 points and White had 22 points. In Game 2 at Madison Square Garden on April 16, the Celtics won again by the score of 111-99. Havlicek had 27 points, Nelson had 23 points and White had 22 points. Frazier had 21 points for New York while small forward Bill Bradley had 20 points. Back at the Boston Garden for Game 3 on April 19, the Knicks would pull out the narrow 103-100 win. Frazier had 38 points while guard Earl “The Pearl” Monroe had 23 points for the Knicks. Cowens had 28 points for the Celtics while Havlicek had 27 points.

Returning to Madison Square Garden for Game 4 on April 21, the Celtics won 98-91. Havlicek led Boston’s offensive charge with 36 points while Frazier and Monroe tried to keep New York in the game with 25 points and 20 points respectively. The Celtics would wrap things up in Game 5 on April 24 with a 105-94 victory. Havlicek had 33 points while Don Chaney and Dave Cowens each had 19 points. Knicks power forward Phil Jackson had 27 points while Walt Frazier had 23 points in a losing effort.

The Boston Celtics would take on the Western Conference Champion Milwaukee Bucks in the 1974 NBA Finals, and it would be a heavily contested 7-game series. The Milwaukee Arena would host Game 1 on April 28, and the Celtics would win 98-83. Havlicek had 26 points while White and Cowens each had 19 points. For the Bucks star center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had 35 points. Milwaukee would win Game 2 on April 30 by the score of 105-96 as Kareem would have 36 points and small forward Bob Dandridge would have 21 points. Although in a losing effort, Jo Jo White had 25 points for the Celtics.

The Boston Garden hosted Game 3 on May 3, and the Celtics would retake the series lead with a 95-83 win. Dave Cowens had 30 points and John Havlicek had 28 points. Kareem had 26 points but the Bucks couldn’t keep up with the Celtics. The Bucks would take Game 4 on May 5 by the score of 97-89. Kareem led Milwaukee in scoring with 34 points while Bob Dandridge had 24 points. Havlicek kept Boston in the game with 33 points and Cowens had 24 points, but the Bucks would pull away late in the game.

Returning to the Milwaukee Arena for Game 5 on May 7, Boston would win 96-87. Cowens and Havlicek both had 28 points. Kareem had 37 points for Milwaukee while point guard Oscar Robertson had 23 points. In the most thrilling game of the 1974 NBA Finals, the Bucks won Game 6 on May 10 102-101 in double overtime at the Boston Garden. Kareem had 34 points, Dandridge had 20 points and Robertson had 18 points for the Bucks while Havicek had 36 points and White had 18 points for the Celtics.

In the deciding Game 7 on May 12, the Celtics would send the fans at the Milwaukee Arena back home unhappy as they won 102-87. Tom Heinsohn came up with a terrific game plan on defense as he would have Boston defenders swarm onto Kareem Abdul-Jabbar via double teaming and triple teaming, which allowed Dave Cowens to break free and score 28 points. Kareem would be held to 26 points in Game 7.

The one constant offensive threat for the Celtics was John Havlicek, and he would be named the 1974 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player. It is interesting to note that while Havlicek averaged 26.4 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists per Finals game, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar fared statistically better than Havlicek. Kareem averaged 32.6 points, 12.1 rebounds and 5.4 assists per Finals game.