Boston Celtics accomplishments and records explained

This is a comprehensive list of the accomplishments and records of the Boston Celtics. The Celtics are an American professional basketball team currently playing in the National Basketball Association.

Playoffs

Championships (18)

The Celtics' 18 NBA Championships are the most of any NBA franchise. Boston's first 13 championships were won as the Walter A. Brown Trophy (original trophy retired in 1976), and five recent championships were won as the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy (introduced in 1977 as the second incarnation of the Walter A. Brown Trophy, renamed in 1984).^[1]

• 1957
• 1959
• 1960
• 1961
• 1962
• 1963
• 1964
• 1965
• 1966
• 1968
• 1969
• 1974
• 1976
• 1981
• 1984
• 1986
• 2008
• 2024

Conference titles (11)

Since 2022, the Eastern Conference championship trophy was renamed the Bob Cousy Trophy in honor of the legendary Celtics player.^{[2] [3]}

• 1974
• 1976
• 1981
• 1984
• 1985
• 1986
• 1987
• 2008
• 2010
• 2022
• 2024

Division titles (34)

Since 2022, the Atlantic Division championship was awarded to that division's first-place team, and was named the Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton Trophy in honor of the first African American player to sign an NBA contract.^{[4] [5]}

• 1957
• 1958
• 1959
• 1960
• 1961
• 1962
• 1963
• 1964
• 1965
• 1972
• 1973
• 1974
• 1975
• 1976
• 1980
• 1981
• 1982
• 1984
• 1985
• 1986
• 1987
• 1988
• 1991
• 1992
• 2005
• 2008
• 2009
• 2010
• 2011
• 2012
• 2017
• 2022
• 2023
• 2024

Regular season titles (19)

Since 2023, the NBA has awarded the Maurice Podoloff Trophy to the team who finished with the best overall record in the regular season.^[6]

• 2024

Hall of Fame

37 people were inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as players, 6 – as coaches, 6 – as contributors.^[7]

Boston Celtics Hall of Famers
Players
No.	Name	Position	Tenure	Inducted	No.	Name	Position	Tenure	Inducted
22			1950–1956	1960	17			1956–1958	1961
14			1950–1963	1971	6	Bill Russell ^3		1956–1969	1975
21			1951–1961	1976	23			1954–1964	1982
24			1957–1969	1984	17			1962–1978	1984
15 20	Tom Heinsohn ^1		1956–1965	1986	20			1954	1987
44			1980	1987	4 34			1962–1964	1988
25 27			1958–1967	1989	44			1977–1978	1990
18			1970–1980	1991	7			1978–1983	1991
5			1985–1988	1993	18			1966–1970	1997
19			1955–1958	1998	33	Larry Bird ^2		1979–1992	1998
32			1980–1993	1999	11			1979	2000
00			1980–1994	2003	12			1994–1995	2006
3			1983–1990	2010	53			1988	2011
20			2004–2005	2013	10			1969–1979	2015
36			2010–2011	2016	11			1975–1977	2018
40			1994–1997	2018	20			2007–2012	2018
11			1950–1954	2019	4			1961–1962	2019
44			1972–1975	2019	5			2007–2013	2020
34			1998–2013	2021	4			1997–1998	2024
Coaches
Name		Position	Tenure	Inducted	Name		Position	Tenure	Inducted
		Head coach	1948–1950	1968	2		Head coach	1950–1966	1969
		Head coach	1997–2001	2013	15	Tom Heinsohn ^1	Head coach	1969–1978	2015
		Head coach	1979–1983	2019	6	Bill Russell ^3	Head coach	1966–1969	2021
Contributors
Name		Position	Tenure	Inducted	Name		Position	Tenure	Inducted
1		Owner	1945–1964	1965			Executive	1946–1969	1965
28			1966–1968	1999			Executive	1990–1994	2006
16	Satch Sanders ^4		1960–1973	2011	17			1953–1955	2012

Additionally, Johnny Most and Mike Gorman were honored with the Hall of Fame's Curt Gowdy Media Award. Most was awarded in 1993 for his 37-year career as the Celtics radio announcer, while Gorman was awarded in 2021 for his 40-year career as the Celtics television announcer.

Notes:

• ¹ In total, Heinsohn was inducted into the Hall of Fame twice – as player and as coach.
• ² In total, Bird was inducted into the Hall of Fame twice – as player and as a member of the 1992 Olympic team.
• ³ In total, Russell was inducted into the Hall of Fame twice – as player and as coach.
• ⁴ Sanders was also coached the team in 1978.

Retired numbers

See also: List of National Basketball Association retired numbers. The Celtics have retired 23 numbers,^{[8] [9]} the most of any professional sports franchise in North America.^[10]

• ¹ Also served as head coach (1966–69). Retired league-wide in 2022.
• ² Also served as head coach (1969–78); as broadcaster (1966–1969, 1980–2020).
• ³ Also served as head coach (1978).
• ⁴ Also served as head coach (1978–79).
• ⁵ Loscutoff, who wore #18, asked that his legacy be honored by allowing other Celtics to wear his number in the future. On one of the banners of retired numbers at the TD Garden, Loscutoff is represented by a square with the letters "LOSCY". #18 was later retired for Dave Cowens.
• ⁶ Also served as head coach (1983–88).
• ⁷ Also served as broadcaster (1995-present); briefly wore No. 30 in 1977–78.
• ⁸ Died of a cardiac arrest while still playing for the team; number retired posthumously.

Award winners

^[11] NBA MVP

• Bob Cousy – 1957
• Bill Russell – 1958, 1961–1963, 1965
• Dave Cowens – 1973
• Larry Bird – 1984–1986

NBA Eastern Conference Finals MVP

• Jayson Tatum – 2022
• Jaylen Brown – 2024

NBA Finals MVP

• John Havlicek – 1974
• Jo Jo White – 1976
• Cedric Maxwell – 1981
• Larry Bird – 1984, 1986
• Paul Pierce – 2008
• Jaylen Brown – 2024

NBA Defensive Player of the Year

• Kevin Garnett – 2008
• Marcus Smart - 2022

NBA Hustle Award

• Marcus Smart – 2019, 2022, 2023

NBA Rookie of the Year

• Tom Heinsohn – 1957
• Dave Cowens – 1971
• Larry Bird – 1980

NBA Sixth Man of the Year

• Kevin McHale – 1984, 1985
• Bill Walton – 1986
• Malcolm Brogdon – 2023

NBA Coach of the Year

• Red Auerbach – 1965
• Tom Heinsohn – 1973
• Bill Fitch – 1980

NBA Executive of the Year

• Red Auerbach – 1980
• Danny Ainge – 2008
• Brad Stevens – 2024

Community Assist Award

• Isaiah Thomas – 2017
• Jaylen Brown – 2020

All-NBA First Team

• Ed Sadowski – 1948
• Ed Macauley – 1951–1953
• Bob Cousy – 1952–1961
• Bill Sharman – 1956–1959
• Bill Russell – 1959, 1963, 1965
• John Havlicek – 1971–1974
• Larry Bird – 1980–1988
• Kevin McHale – 1987
• Kevin Garnett – 2008
• Jayson Tatum – 2022–2024

All-NBA Second Team

• Bill Sharman – 1953, 1955, 1960
• Ed Macauley – 1954
• Bill Russell – 1958, 1960–1962, 1964, 1966–1968
• Tom Heinsohn – 1961–1964
• Bob Cousy – 1962, 1963
• John Havlicek – 1964, 1966, 1968–1970, 1975, 1976
• Sam Jones – 1965–1967
• Dave Cowens – 1973, 1975, 1976
• Jo Jo White – 1975, 1977
• Nate Archibald – 1981
• Robert Parish – 1982
• Larry Bird – 1990
• Paul Pierce – 2009
• Isaiah Thomas – 2017
• Kyrie Irving – 2019
• Jaylen Brown – 2023

All-NBA Third Team

• Robert Parish – 1989
• Paul Pierce – 2002, 2003, 2008
• Rajon Rondo – 2012
• Jayson Tatum – 2020

NBA All-Rookie First Team

• John Havlicek – 1963
• Jo Jo White – 1970
• Dave Cowens – 1971
• Larry Bird – 1980
• Kevin McHale – 1981
• Dee Brown – 1991
• Antoine Walker – 1997
• Ron Mercer – 1998
• Paul Pierce – 1999
• Jayson Tatum – 2018

NBA All-Rookie Second Team

• Brian Shaw – 1989
• Rick Fox – 1992
• Dino Rađa – 1994
• Eric Montross – 1995
• J. R. Bremer – 2003
• Al Jefferson – 2005
• Ryan Gomes – 2006
• Rajon Rondo – 2007
• Kelly Olynyk – 2014
• Marcus Smart – 2015
• Jaylen Brown – 2017

NBA All-Defensive First Team

• Bill Russell – 1969
• John Havlicek – 1972–1976
• Paul Silas – 1975, 1976
• Dave Cowens – 1976
• Kevin McHale – 1986–1988
• Dennis Johnson – 1987
• Kevin Garnett – 2008, 2009, 2011
• Rajon Rondo – 2010, 2011
• Avery Bradley – 2016
• Marcus Smart – 2019, 2020, 2022

NBA All-Defensive Second Team

• Tom Sanders – 1969
• John Havlicek – 1969–1971
• Don Chaney – 1972–1975
• Dave Cowens – 1975, 1980
• Larry Bird – 1982–1984
• Kevin McHale – 1983, 1989, 1990
• Dennis Johnson – 1984–1986
• Rajon Rondo – 2009, 2012
• Kevin Garnett – 2012
• Avery Bradley – 2013
• Al Horford – 2018
• Robert Williams III – 2022
• Derrick White – 2023, 2024
• Jrue Holiday – 2024

NBA All-Star weekend

All-Star Game Selections^[12]

• Bob Cousy – 1951–1963
• Ed Macauley – 1951–1956
• Bill Sharman – 1953–1960
• Tom Heinsohn – 1957, 1961–1965
• Bill Russell – 1958–1969
• Sam Jones – 1962, 1964–1966, 1968
• John Havlicek – 1966–1978
• Bailey Howell – 1967
• Jo Jo White – 1971–1977
• Dave Cowens – 1972–1978, 1980
• Paul Silas – 1975
• Nate Archibald – 1980–1982
• Larry Bird – 1980–1988, 1990–1992
• Robert Parish – 1981–1987, 1990, 1991
• Kevin McHale – 1984, 1986–1991

• Dennis Johnson – 1985
• Danny Ainge – 1988
• Reggie Lewis – 1992
• Antoine Walker – 1998, 2002, 2003
• Paul Pierce – 2002–2006, 2008–2012
• Ray Allen – 2008, 2009, 2011
• Kevin Garnett – 2008–2011, 2013
• Rajon Rondo – 2010–2013
• Isaiah Thomas – 2016, 2017
• Al Horford – 2018
• Kyrie Irving – 2018, 2019
• Jayson Tatum – 2020–2024
• Kemba Walker – 2020
• Jaylen Brown – 2021, 2023, 2024

NBA All-Star Game head coaches

• Red Auerbach – 1957–1967
• Tom Heinsohn – 1972–1974, 1976
• Bill Fitch – 1982
• K. C. Jones – 1984–1987
• Chris Ford – 1991
• Doc Rivers – 2008, 2011
• Brad Stevens – 2017
• Joe Mazzulla – 2023^[13]

All-Star Most Valuable Player

• Ed Macauley – 1951
• Bob Cousy – 1954, 1957
• Bill Sharman – 1955
• Bill Russell – 1963
• David Cowens – 1973
• Nate Archibald – 1981
• Larry Bird - 1982
• Jayson Tatum – 2023^[14]

Slam Dunk champion

• Dee Brown – 1991
• Gerald Green – 2007^[15]

Three-Point Contest champion

• Larry Bird – 1986, 1987, 1988
• Paul Pierce – 2010^[16]

See also

• NBA records

Notes and References

1. Web site: Championship Wins. NBA.com. 8 February 2012.
2. Web site: NBA introduces new lineup of postseason hardware. NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. May 12, 2022.
3. Web site: NBA Season Recaps. https://web.archive.org/web/20110925053934/http://www.nba.com/history/seasonreviews/season-recaps/index.html. dead. 25 September 2011. NBA.com. 8 February 2012.
4. Web site: NBA unveils new trophies for division winners named after 6 NBA legends. NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. April 23, 2022.
5. Web site: Team Index. basketball-reference.com. 8 February 2012.
6. Web site: NBA unveils redesigned trophies for end-of-season awards. NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. December 6, 2022.
7. Web site: Celtics Hall of Famers. NBA.com. February 8, 2019.
8. Web site: Retired Numbers - Boston Celtics History.
9. Web site: Kevin Garnett's Number Will Be Retired. NBA.com. February 13, 2020.
10. Web site: Celtics will retire Paul Pierce's number on Feb. 11 vs. Cavs | Boston Herald . 2017-08-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170819020221/http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/celtics/celtics_insider/2017/08/celtics_will_retire_paul_pierces_number_on_feb_11_vs_cavs . 2017-08-19 . dead .
11. Web site: Award Winners – Celtics. NBA.com. 8 February 2012.
12. Web site: Boston Celtics All-Star Game Selections. Basketball-reference.com. 17 February 2018.
13. Web site: Hurley. Michael. Joe Mazzulla has very Joe Mazzulla response to being All-Star Game head coach. January 31, 2023. CBS News.
14. Web site: Mcmenamin. Dave. Jayson Tatum scores All-Star record 55 points, wins MVP. February 19, 2023. ESPN.
15. Web site: Geagan. Matt. Here's a look back at the Boston Celtics in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. February 8, 2024. CBS News.
16. Web site: NBA All-Star 3-Point Contest Winners. April 5, 2024. NBA.com.