| Honey Russell | |
| Height Ft: | 6 |
| Height In: | 1 |
| Weight Lb: | 175 |
| Birth Date: | 31 May 1902 |
| Birth Place: | Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Livingston, New Jersey, U.S. |
| High School: | Alexander Hamilton (Brooklyn, New York) |
| Years1: | 1920–1921 |
| Team1: | Plymouth Shawnees |
| Years2: | 1920–1922 |
| Team2: | Easthampton Hampers |
| Years3: | 1921–1923 |
| Team3: | Brooklyn Pros |
| Years4: | 1921–1922 |
| Team4: | Mohawk Indians |
| Years5: | 1921–1923 |
| Team5: | Albany Senators |
| Years6: | 1922–1923 |
| Team6: | Northampton Hampers |
| Years7: | 1923–1924 |
| Team7: | Yonkers Leaguers |
| Years8: | 1923–1925 |
| Team8: | Cleveland Rosenblooms |
| Years9: | 1924–1925 |
| Team9: | Original Celtics |
| Years10: | 1925–1927 |
| Team10: | Cleveland Rosenblums |
| Years11: | 1925–1926 |
| Team11: | Lou Gehrig All Stars |
| Years12: | 1926–1930 |
| Team12: | Chicago Bruins |
| Years13: | 1928–1929 |
| Team13: | Rochester Centrals |
| Years14: | 1930–1931 |
| Team14: | Paterson Crescents |
| Years15: | 1930–1931 |
| Team15: | Bridgeton Moose |
| Years16: | 1930–1931 |
| Team16: | Carbondale |
| Years17: | 1931–1932 |
| Team17: | Bridgeton |
| Years18: | 1931–1933 |
| Team18: | Brooklyn Americans |
| Years19: | 1932–1933 |
| Team19: | Trenton Bengals |
| Years20: | 1932–1933 |
| Team20: | Brooklyn Jewels |
| Years21: | 1932–1934 |
| Team21: | Dunmore |
| Years22: | 1933–1934 |
| Team22: | Trenton Moose |
| Years23: | 1934–1935 |
| Team23: | Newark / New Britain Mules |
| Years24: | 1934–1935 |
| Team24: | Nanticoke |
| Years25: | 1934–1936 |
| Team25: | Freeland |
| Years26: | 1934–1935 |
| Team26: | Albany |
| Years27: | 1935–1939 |
| Team27: | New York Jewels |
| Years28: | 1936–1937 |
| Team28: | Hazleton |
| Years29: | 1937–1938 |
| Team29: | Allentown |
| Years30: | 1937–1938 |
| Team30: | Wilkes-Barre |
| Years31: | 1937–1938 |
| Team31: | New York Hakoah |
| Years32: | 1937–1938 |
| Team32: | New York Kate Smith Celtics |
| Years33: | 1938–1939 |
| Team33: | Allentown-Hamburg |
| Years34: | 1938–1939 |
| Team34: | Tunkhannock |
| Years35: | 1938–1940 |
| Team35: | New York Yankees |
| Years36: | 1939–1940 |
| Team36: | Wilkes-Barre Barons |
| Years37: | 1939–1940 |
| Team37: | Hamburg |
| Years38: | 1939–1940 |
| Team38: | Washington Brewers |
| Years39: | 1942–1943 |
| Team39: | Wilmington Clippers |
| Years40: | 1942–1944 |
| Team40: | Camden / Brooklyn Indians |
| Years41: | 1944–1945 |
| Team41: | New York Westchesters |
| Years42: | 1944–1945 |
| Team42: | Jersey Reds |
| Cyears1: | 1927–1930 |
| Cteam1: | Chicago Bruins |
| Cyears2: | 1934–1935 |
| Cteam2: | Newark / New Britain Mules |
| Cyears3: | 1934–1935 |
| Cteam3: | Albany |
| Cyears4: | 1936–1937 |
| Cteam4: | New York Jewels |
| Cyears5: | 1936–1943 |
| Cteam5: | Seton Hall |
| Cyears6: | 1937–1938 |
| Cteam6: | New York Kate Smith Celtics |
| Cyears7: | 1939–1940 |
| Cteam7: | Wilkes-Barre Barons |
| Cyears8: | 1942–1944 |
| Cteam8: | Camden / Brooklyn Indians |
| Cyears9: | 1944–1945 |
| Cteam9: | New York Westchesters |
| Cyears10: | 1945–1946 |
| Cteam10: | Trenton |
| Cyears11: | 1945–1946 |
| Cteam11: | Manhattan |
| Cyears12: | – |
| Cteam12: | Boston Celtics |
| Cyears13: | 1948–1950 |
| Cteam13: | Schenectady Packers |
| Cyears14: | 1949–1960 |
| Cteam14: | Seton Hall |
| Bbr: | russejo99c |
| Hof Player: | honey-russell |
| Highlights: | As player:
As coach: |
John David "Honey" Russell (May 31, 1902 – November 15, 1973) was an American basketball player and coach who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1964. He turned professional after his sophomore year of high school, and for the next 28 years he played for numerous early 20th century pro teams, including many in the American Basketball League. His career included over 3,200 pro games (a number that would take a modern NBA player 30–40 years to equal). He was the first coach of the NBA's Boston Celtics (1946–1948).[1]
Russell coached basketball at Seton Hall University from 1936 to 1943 and again from 1949 to 1960. His teams won 294 games and lost 137. In 1940 and 1941, Seton Hall ran its winning streak to 43 games, a national record at the time. The 1952–53 team won the National Invitation Tournament at Madison Square Garden in New York City. That team won 31 games, including 27 in a row, while only losing 2 games.
Russell also was a scout in professional baseball, working for the Atlanta Braves, Montreal Expos and Chicago White Sox.[2] Of the many players he signed, 23 made it to the major leagues, including Joe and Frank Torre, Don McMahon, and Earl Williams.
|-| align="left" |Boston| align="left" |1946–47| 60||22||38||||align="center" |5th in Eastern||—||—||—||—|| align="center" |Missed playoffs|-| align="left" |Boston| align="left" |1947–48| 58||20||38||||align="center" |3rd in Eastern||3||1||2|||| align="center" |Lost in Quarterfinals|-|-class="sortbottom"| align="center" colspan="2"|Total| 118||42||76|||| ||3||1||2||||