Red Auerbach dies at age 89..

[Old School Fool]

R.I.P.

WASHINGTON -- Red Auerbach, who coached the Boston Celtics to nine NBA championships in the 1950s and 1960s, died Saturday. He was 89.

Auerbach won 938 games with the Celtics and was the winningest coach in NBA history until Lenny Wilkens overtook him in the 1994-95 season. As general manager, the straight-talking Auerbach was also the architect of Celtics teams that won seven more titles in the 1970s and 1980s.

He died of a heart attack, according to an NBA official, who didn't want to be identified.

Auerbach joined the Celtics in 1950 as the franchise's third coach and also served as general manager, president and vice chairman of the board.

Auerbach guided the Celtics to their first championship as a coach-general manager in 1957 and an unprecedented eight straight titles from 1959-66, elevating them above such sports dynasties as the New York Yankees and Montreal Canadiens for consecutive championships.

Known for lighting up a cigar on the bench after victories, Auerbach retired as coach after the eighth straight title and appointed center Bill Russell as player-coach, but remained the team's general manager through the 1983-84 season and served as president from 1970-97 and then again in 2001.

From 1957-69, the Celtics won 11 championships in 13 seasons. They added five more titles in 1974, 1976, 1981, 1984 and 1986 for an NBA-high total of 16.

Phil Jackson is the only other coach to win nine NBA titles -- six with the Chicago Bulls and three with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Elected to the Hall of Fame in 1969, Auerbach retired with a record of 938-479 in the regular season and 99-69 in the playoffs.

Auerbach is survived by two daughters, one granddaughter and three great-grandchildren.

Information from SportsTicker was used in this report.

[shadowgrin]

EDIT: R.I.P. Red. The creator of the fastbreak and many more strategies in basketball that helped define the game today.

[Jing]

no! oh my fuckin god..... Red is gone..... he truely made the Celtics one of the best dynasties ever and will always be remembered... his loss is a big blow to the entire basketball family...

[NJNETSFANFORLIFE]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2642131

R.I.P

[Silas]

that's too bad, he was a great guy, and a real genius, he's up there with John Wooden and Phil Jackson and Pat Reilly...

[Jackal]

Up there? He's above them all.

Rest in peace, not only a loss to the basketball world, a huge loss to his family.

Edit: And people that say "oh, 89 is a nice age to go"...for the families, it's never a nice age to go. Never.

[BigKaboom2]

......*loss for words*

[CMJ3]

I guess it was inevitable, everyone has to die sometime, he had a good run. I'm sure the Celtics will be grieving a lot, He'll be honored at their next home game i would imagine.

[Riot]

Damn...very tough loss for basketball. This guy was one of the biggest influences on basketball in the games history. He will be missed by many.

RIP Red

[dada]

Unfortunate but everyone has their time. He left a defined mark on basketball and he will always be remembered as one of the greatest coaches to ever pace along an NBA sideline.

[artestfighttrainer]

R.I.P The best coach in NBA History.

[Jeffx]

R.I.P The best coach in NBA History.

That goes without saying, and I'm a Celtic hater.

[NBA_Bryant24]

R.I.P Red you will always be remebered as 1 of the greats

[Gundy]

I'm not big on NBA history so I don't know much about Red Auerbach. I am currently watching a documentary about him and the Celtics on NBA TV on TVU. They showed at one part him punching the other team's owner right on the court. You don't get coaches like that anymore.

[Anthony15]

RIP Red...

[Andrew]

It feels wrong to attempt to sum up the career of a man like Red Auerbach in just a few words but his achievements truly speak for themselves. There have been many great coaches but I think Tom Heinsohn put it best when he said that we will never see anyone else like Red Auerbach.

Beyond his accomplishments on the sidelines and in the front office, the mere fact he spent more than half a century as part of the same club is amazing in itself. In a league where players, coaches and executives alike often change address it's been a rare display of loyalty and dedication on the part of both Auerbach and the Celtics organisation. For that, he'll no doubt always be synonymous with basketball in Boston.

RIP, Red Auerbach.

[BOSS]

R.I.P Red Auerbach

Well I wasn't born in the same era he coached and gm'd but as I grew to love the sport basketball,
his name came up alot as one of the greatest coaches ever and a successful executive.

Like Tim Heinsohn said on one of the video clips on ESPN,
the game of basketball has lost the greatest champion.

[Isaiah]

the final victory cigar...

RIP Red..

[Cornerthree]

R.I.P best coach so far...

[scrub]

R.I.P Red...

[mAgoTT50]

RIP red

[sdude]

R.I.P.

[Indy]

Red is a guy who shouldn't have a sad funeral, and while its ok for people to mourn and say RIP, this is an opporunity to celebrate the life of a great person who lived a full life.

RIP Red.

[cyanide]

Wow, a great legend dies. He certainly did lead a full and memorable life, and he will always be remembered. Condolences to his family.

[---]

Just watching on NBATV a special on Red. No doubt in my mind he was the best coach of all time, and after watching this show, it seems like he was a great guy off the court also.

So to Red,

Rest In Peace