Today in Boston Celtics history, Boston alum and Indiana Pacers head coach Richard "Rick" Preston Carlisle was born in Ogdensburg, New York, in 1959. He played his NCAA basketball at the Universities of Maine and Virginia, where he led Virginia to a Final Four appearance in 1984, ultimately losing to Hakeem Olajuwon's Houston Cougars.
The former Cavalier was selected with the 70th overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft (there were several more rounds to the draft in that era), and later went on to win a title with the team in 1986 in a reserve role before being waived by the storied ball club in the fall of 1987.
Carlisle averaged 2.2 points and an assist per game as a Celtic.
Birthdays
It is also the birthday of former Celtic shooting guard Rex Morgan, born this day in 1948 in Charleston, Illinois. A product of Jacksonville University, Morgan was taken 21st overall in the 1970 NBA Draft and played just 62 games over two seasons for the franchise. He averaged 2.8 points and 1.5 rebounds with the club.
Evan Turner shares today with them as his birthday, born in 1988 in Chicago, Illinois. Turner played at Ohio State, where he won National College Player of the Year honors in 2010. He was selected second overall in the NBA draft that year by the Philadelphia 76ers, and played for them and the Indiana Pacers before the latter declined his qualifying offer, causing Turner to sign with the Celtics.
He parlayed his improved play into a $70 million deal with the Portland Trail Blazers in 2016. Turner averaged 10 points, 5 rebounds, as many assists, and a steal per game as a Celtic, and returned to the team as an assistant coach after his playing career.
Historic milestones
Today is the date that 1953 NBA Draft selection of the Celtics Lou Tsioropoulos debuted for the team in 1956 after returning to Kentucky for a graduate season and then spending time in the U.S. Air Force.
It came in a 115-112 win over the New York Knicks that saw Tsioropoulos put up 5 points, 3 of which were earned at the line for a solid debut.
Gone too soon
Finally, it is also the date of former Boston big man Hank Beenders' passing in 2003. He played eight games for the Celtics in their Basketball Association of America (BAA - a precursor league to the NBA) days in the 1948-49 season.
Beenders logged 2.4 points per game in his time with the team in that stretch.
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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Today in Boston Celtics history: Carlisle, Turner, Morgan born; Tsioropoulos debut; Beenders passed