Boston Player

Let's say you're the coach of one of the NBA teams with the most championship banners hanging from its rafters, with every current and former player available on your bench. Game 7 of the Finals is approaching and it's time to put your team on the floor. Who's your starting center? Bill Russell, Robert Parrish, or Dave Cowens? Who's starting at guard? Bob Cousy, Jo Jo White, Tiny Archibald, Dennis Johnson, or Kyrie Irving? At power forward, are you playing Kevin McHale or Jayson Tatum? Is Larry Bird your small forward or John Havlicek? Combining statistical analysis, common sense, and a host of intangibles, long-time Celtics writer John Karalis constructs an all-time All-Star Celtics line-up for the ages. Agree with his choices or not, you'll learn all there is to know about the men who played for and coached the most successful franchise in NBA history.

One of professional basketball's most iconic franchises, the Boston Celtics—along with the Boston Red Sox and New England Patriots, both of whom have been the subject of "50 Greatest" treatments by sports historian Robert W. Cohen—represent a multistate region rather than just a city or state. Many of the sport's very best have played for the Celtics, including Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Paul Pierce. But who is the greatest of them all? In The 50 Greatest Players in Boston Celtics History, Cohen attempts to determine just that. Using as measuring sticks the degree to which these players impacted the fortunes of the team, the extent to which they added to the Celtics legacy, and the levels of statistical compilation and overall dominance they attained while wearing a Celtics uniform, this book ranks, from 1 to 50, the top 50 players in team history. Quotes from opposing players and former teammates are provided along the way, as are summaries of each player’s greatest season, most memorable performances, and most notable achievements.

Along with the Boston Red Sox and the New England Patriots, both of which have been the subject of “50 Greatest” treatments by Bob Cohen, the Boston Celtics is one of the most iconic professional basketball teams, representing a multi-state region rather than just a city or state. Some of the sport’s greatest played for the Celtics: Bill Russell in the 1950s, John Havlicek in the 70s, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parrish in the 80s, and recently Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett. Sports historian Robert W. Cohen has chosen the best to ever wear the uniform, and he provides a short biographical profile, key stats, and details about each players exploits on the court.

"Whether consciously molding the city through the construction of public spaces or developing social ties through organizations such as athletic clubs, Bostonians of all classes participated in recreation-based community building, often at cross-purposes. Elite Bostonians, for instance, promoted the establishment of parks as a healthy alternative to unsavory activities, such as drinking and gambling, that they associated with the city's vast new pool of immigrants. They were soon forced to compromise, however, with citizens who were less interested in the rhetoric of moral uplift than in using the parks for competitive athletics and commercial amusements."--BOOK JACKET.

The Boston Red Sox are one of the most iconic teams in all of professional sports, representing not just a city or a state, but an entire region--they're New England's sole entry into MLB. Baseball immortals Tris Speaker and Babe Ruth wore a Red Sox uniform early in their careers, and many other great players, including Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, Jim Rice, Wade Boggs, and Pedro Martinez have played for New England's beloved ball club. Sports historian Robert W. Cohen has chosen the 50 best ever to play for the Sox and profiles their exploits. Chances are you'll find your favorite player here.

Think you know everything about the Boston Celtics? Think again! The follow-up to the original Boston Celtics IQ, this test will strain your brain even harder. Volume II contains five chapters and 200 brand new trivia questions that will stump even the most seasoned Celtics fans. No Celtics topics are off-limits. Are you a Celtics Hall of Famer, or should you start rooting for a lesser franchise like the Lakers or Knicks? It’s time to find out – test your skills, wrack your brain, it’s the ultimate Boston Celtics IQ test.

In the 111-year-history of the Boston Red Sox, fans have been treated to countless firsts— the first manager of the franchise (Jimmy Collins), the first American League MVP to play for the Sox (Tris Speaker), the first 20-game winner (Bill Dineen), the first to hit 500 home runs (Ted Williams), and the first Red Sox pitcher to win the Cy Young Award (Roger Clemens). The list goes on. In Boston Red Sox Firsts, veteran Red Sox historian Bill Nowlin presents the stories behind the firsts in Red Sox history in question-and-answer format. More than a mere trivia book, Nowlin’s collection includes substantive answers to the question of “who was the first…?” on a variety of topics, many of which will surprise even seasoned fans of the Sox.

Sport often mirrored the racial climate of the time, but it also informed and encouraged equality on and off the field. In Boston, the Black athletic body historically represented a challenge to the city’s liberal image. Boston's Black Athletes: Identity, Performance, and Activism interprets Boston’s contested racial history through the diverse experiences of the city’s African American sports figures who directed their talent toward the struggle for social justice. Editors Robert Cvornyek and Douglas Stark and the contributors explore a variety of representative athletes, such as Kittie Knox, Louise Stokes, and Medina Dixon, that negotiated Boston’s racial boundaries at sequential moments during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries to demonstrate Boston’s long and troubled racial history. The contributors’ biographical sketches are grounded in stories that have remained memorable within Boston’s Black neighborhoods. In recounting the struggles and triumphs of these individuals, this book amplifies their stories and reminds readers that Boston’s Black sports fans found a historic consistency in their athletes to shape racial identity and cultural expression.

The second in a series of books written by hockey's most authoritative author, Stan Fischler, examines the storied history of the Boston Bruins. Formatted like his first book for SPI, The Greatest Players and Moments of the Philadelphia Flyers, Fischler's Bruins book contains all of Boston hockey's most famous names -- Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr, Eddie Shore, Milt, Schmidt, John Bucyk, and many others. Of the Original Six NHL clubs, only the Montreal Canadiens have a better all-time winning percentage than the Boston Bruins. Stories and trivia about all five of the Bruins' Stanley Cup championship teams are also included.