(1934-08-26)August 26, 1934 Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.
Died
November 9, 2020(2020-11-09) (aged 86) Newton, Massachusetts, U.S.
Listed height
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight
218 lb (99 kg)
Career information
High school
Saint Michael's (Union City, New Jersey)
College
Holy Cross (1953–1956)
NBA draft
1956: territorial pick
Selected by the Boston Celtics
Playing career
1956–1965
Position
Power forward
Number
15
Coaching career
1969–1978
Career history
As player:
1956–1965
Boston Celtics
As coach:
1969–1978
Boston Celtics
Career highlights and awards
As player:
8× NBA champion (1957, 1959–1965)
6× NBA All-Star (1957, 1961–1965)
4× All-NBA Second Team (1961–1964)
NBA Rookie of the Year (1957)
No. 15 retired by Boston Celtics
Consensus first-team All-American (1956)
Second-team All-American – Collier's (1955)
Third-team All-American – AP, UPI, NEA (1955)
No. 24 retired by Holy Cross Crusaders
As coach:
2× NBA champion (1974, 1976)
NBA Coach of the Year (1973)
4× NBA All-Star Game head coach (1972–1974, 1976)
Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award (2009)
Career statistics
Points
12,194 (18.6 ppg)
Rebounds
5,749 (8.8 rpg)
Assists
1,318 (2.0 apg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Basketball Hall of Fame as coach
College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006
Thomas William Heinsohn (August 26, 1934 – November 9, 2020) was an American professional basketball player, coach, and broadcaster. He was associated with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) for six decades as a player, coach and broadcaster. He played for the Celtics from 1956 to 1965, and also coached the team from 1969 to 1978. He spent over 30 years as the color commentator for the Celtics' local broadcasts alongside play-by-play commentator Mike Gorman. He is regarded as one of the most iconic Celtics figures in the franchise's history, known during his lifetime for his charisma and loyalty to the team and its traditions. From this, he earned the nickname "Mr. Celtic".
Heinsohn was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame for his contributions as a player. He was also inducted into the Hall of Fame for his success as a head coach. He also helped form the NBA Players Association. Heinsohn was the only person to have the distinction of being involved in an official team capacity in each of the Celtics' 17 championships, as well as each of their first 21 NBA Finals appearances.
Thomas William Heinsohn (August 26, 1934 – November 9, 2020) was an American professional basketball player, coach, and broadcaster. He was associated...
Auerbach, TomHeinsohn, Fitch and Rick Pitino have earned induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame as coaches. Bill Russell, TomHeinsohn, Tom Sanders...
Holy Cross standout, and 1957 NBA Rookie of the Year, TomHeinsohn. Both Russell and Heinsohn worked extraordinarily well with Cousy, and they were the...
Boston Celtics, doing so alongside color commentator and Celtics legend TomHeinsohn. The duo called games together until 2020, with Gorman later retiring...
sociologist and economist TomHeinsohn (1934–2020), American basketball player This page lists people with the surname Heinsohn. If an internal link intending...
retired April 9, 1982 Bob Cousy, PG (1950–1963); retired October 16, 1963 TomHeinsohn, F 2 (1956–1965); retired October 15, 1966 Satch Sanders, PF 3 (1960–1973);...
Cunningham, Mendy Rudolph, Hot Rod Hundley, Oscar Robertson, Steve Jones, TomHeinsohn and Rick Barry). Musburger called Game 5 of the 1976 NBA Finals, with...
presented matchup problems on offense for Jo Jo White, forcing Celtics coach TomHeinsohn to assign Don Chaney to guard him. This enabled Oscar Robertson to more...
the only coach to be named Coach of the Year with three franchises. TomHeinsohn, Bill Sharman, and Lenny Wilkens are the only recipients to have been...
Rochester Royals. TomHeinsohn from the College of the Holy Cross was selected before the draft as Boston Celtics' territorial pick. Heinsohn went on to win...
2010-06-03. Craig, Jack (July 15, 1990). "A Man for All Celtic Channels? Heinsohn is Preparing For Double Duty This Season in Broadcast Booth". Boston Globe...
for the Celtics due to a painful heel injury. However, Boston coach TomHeinsohn rushed Havlicek into the game with 7:24 left in the first quarter as...
"TomHeinsohn NBA Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on January 1, 2021. Retrieved November 24, 2011. "TomHeinsohn Coaching...
Archived from the original on August 7, 2011. Retrieved November 24, 2011. "TomHeinsohn NBA Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original...
championship head coaches, 15 (Auerbach, Larry Brown, Carlisle, Bill Fitch, TomHeinsohn, Red Holzman, Jackson, Kerr, Dick Motta, Nurse, Popovich, Riley, Rivers...
force in college basketball. After USF kept Holy Cross Crusaders star TomHeinsohn scoreless in an entire half, Sports Illustrated wrote: "If [Russell]...
basketball players of all time. In the same draft, Auerbach picked up forward TomHeinsohn and guard K.C. Jones, also two future Hall-of-Famers. Emphasizing team...
Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 17, 2015. Withers, Tom (June 16, 2015). "Warriors win NBA title, down LeBron, Cavs 105-97 in Game...
have been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. TomHeinsohn, Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas are the only four...
the last to conclude before June 10. CBS Sports used Dick Stockton and TomHeinsohn as the play-by-play man and color commentator respectively. Meanwhile...
Hawks 4–3. The Finals featured Hall of Famers Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, TomHeinsohn, Bill Sharman, Frank Ramsey, Sam Jones, K.C. Jones, Coach Red Auerbach...
Denver Nuggets. Other speculations were that he was unhappy with coach TomHeinsohn and also his involvement in a lawsuit from the previous season where...
coaches: John Wooden in 1973, Lenny Wilkens in 1998, Bill Sharman in 2004, TomHeinsohn in 2015, and Bill Russell in 2021. Of the inducted players, 30 were also...
Global Information
