Today in Boston Celtics history: Ray Allen born; Theis, Yabu, Wesley signed; Moore dealt; Waldron passes
Today in Boston Celtics history, Ray Allen was born in Merced, California. As a child of a military family, he grew up in several locations, graduating from high school in Dalzell, South Carolina. He played his college ball at the University of Connecticut, where he earned the Big East and UPI Player of the Year awards in 1996 during his tenure with the Huskies. In the 1996 NBA Draft, Allen was picked up fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves; however, he was promptly traded to the Milwaukee Bucks on draft night, where he would play for parts of seven seasons.
Allen also played for the Seattle Supersonics for five campaigns before being dealt to the Celtics in summer 2007. There, he would help convince big man Kevin Garnett to come to Boston to set the stage for a new “Big Three” of himself, KG, and Paul Pierce. The trio would win a title together in 2008 and made the 2010 NBA Finals, which they nearly won. But, injuries and bad luck combined with several attempts to deal Allen by the front office eroded the spirit of “ubuntu” behind the team’s last title, and would eventually lead to Allen decamping to the Miami Heat.
The move, for less money than the Celtics were offering to a conference rival, created a rift between that Banner 17 title crew that took nearly a decade to mend.
Transactions
It is also the date of Daniel Theis signing with the team in 2017 for a two-year, $2.19 million deal. Theis, who’d previously tried to play his way onto an NBA roster without success, joined the Celtics that fall and quickly became a regular part of the rotation. The Salzgitter native played parts of four seasons with the Celtics. He worked his way up to a starting role before being dealt to the Chicago Bulls at the 2021 trade deadline, only to return a year later in a deal with the Houston Rockets. At the end of the 2022-23 season, he was dealt to the Indiana Pacers. Theis averaged 7.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game while with the team.
Guerschon Yabusele was also signed on this date, also in 2017. Yabu, as he was called, had been drafted 16th overall by the Celtics in the 2016 NBA Draft, and spent a season overseas. It didn’t work out with the Dancing Bear (he had several nicknames), Yabusele getting waived in the summer of 2019, but he has since carved out a successful overseas career in China and Europe before a return to the NBA in 2024. Yabusele logged 2.3 points and 1.4 rebounds per game while with the team.
David Wesley signed with the team as a free agent on this date in 1994 for a three-year, $900,000 deal. He averaged 12.7 points, 3.1 boards, and 5.8 assists per game while a Celtic, leaving the team in the summer of 1997 to sign with the Charlotte Hornets.
It was on this date in 2012 that Celtics dealt E’Twaun Moore, JaJuan Johnson, Sasha Pavlovic, and Sean Williams in a three-team trade that brought back guard Courtney Lee. Lee would play two seasons for Boston before he himself was dealt in another three-team deal that netted the Celtics Jerryd Bayless. In his time with Boston, Lee recorded 7.7 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game.
Gone too soon
Finally, it is also the date that former Celtics owner John Joseph “Jack” Waldron passed away in 1971. The New Bedford, Massachusetts native worked his way up to becoming the president of the Rupert Knickerbocker Brewing Company.
And in that role negotiated the purchase of the Celtics from Louis Pieri and Marjorie Brown, the partners owning the team following the death of Brown’s husband Walter. Later, the parent company sold the franchise, and Waldron left the company to remain president of the Celtics until 1970 – rest in peace.
This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Today in Boston Celtics history: Ray Allen born; Theis, Yabu, Wesley signed; Moore dealt; Waldron passes
