After co-captaining a star-studded Ohio State Buckeyes team that won one National Championship in 1960 and finished runner-up the following year, Larry Siegfried made some questionable career decisions and found himself out of professional basketball two years after being drafted third overall in the NBA Draft.
His luck began to change when former teammate John Havlicek arranged for Ziggy to meet with Red Auerbach, who convinced him to play a reserve role on the Boston Celtics. By the 1965-66 season, Siegfried was beginning to find his old form. He averaged double-figures that year, and was Auerbach's most versatile guard coming off the bench. If he was paired with high-scoring Sam Jones, he assigned himself the role of shutting down the other team's top scoring guard. If he was paired with KC Jones, Ziggy assumed the load on offense.
When KC Jones retired after the 1966-67 season, Siegfried was the glue that held the team together. Both under Auerbach and then under Russell, Ziggy refused to let anyone take a day off at practice. "Larry Siegfried played his first seven seasons in the NBA with the Boston Celtics," Tom Heinsohn once observed, "and won five rings. Each one of those championship teams reflected his scrap, grit, courage, and determination."
No comments:
Post a Comment