John 'The Spear' Havlicek

The Spear story first appeared in Sports Illustrated in the 1960s. I found it in the archives there and wrote a short version of it for BDC. Posting it here in case any new friends haven’t read it yet.

John Havlicek was a three sport star back at Bridgeport High School in Ohio. In football, he played quarterback and reportedly could throw the ball 80 yards in the air. He went to college for basketball, but had the chance to play football at OSU. Coach Woody Hayes pursued him all over the campus, but John turned him down. Hayes kept calling him, "the best quarterback in the Big Ten who isn't playing."

When John graduated college, the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League drafted him in the seventh round and the Boston Celtics drafted him in the first round.

The Celtics offered him a rookie salary of $9,500, with no signing bonus. Reportedly, Walter Brown told him, “Your bonus will be the playoff money." The Browns’ offer was $15,000 and a brand new Chevrolet Impala convertible.

The Celtics eventually raised their offer to match Cleveland’s money. Curious about what he was missing, John took the keys to the car and reported to his first football training camp.

"On the first day, at the first meal, I loaded up my tray and took a seat by myself," he recalled, years later. "I wasn't planning on doing much talking anyway, and I'd heard about the things they did to rookies in the NFL. Suddenly I began to hear these barking and growling noises, like they were maybe directed at me. But when I looked up there was this guy with two T-bone steaks on his plate. He was eating them raw. I thought, 'Boy, this football is going to be tough.' "

Coach Paul Brown decided to try him at wide receiver. He was 6’5” and weighed 205 pounds. He was quickly nicknamed “The Spear”. He ran the 40 yard dash in 4.6 seconds. He had hands like glue. He was as smart as anyone on the field. But, the team was loaded with receivers with talent and more experience, men such as Gary Collins, Ray Renfro, and Bobby Crespino.

Brown called his name in the team’s second exhibition game, against the Steelers, played at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. John reminisced, "The crowd gave me a big hand. They were curious to see if a basketball player could play football. Somehow I made my block, on the cornerback, I think. A perfect block. Jim Brown ran a sweep 48 yards to the Pittsburgh two.

"Somebody in the huddle said, 'O.K., Spear, do it again.' I was feeling pretty good. This time it was an off-tackle play. I lined up looking into the face of Big Daddy Lipscomb. When they peeled everybody off the pile I was the bottom, my shoulder pads twisted around and the part of my helmet that was supposed to be over my ear was jammed against my nose. I said to myself, 'Boy, this football is tough.' "

The Spear almost stuck - he was the last receiver cut. "I liked Paul Brown," he later said, "the way he ran things, the way everything was so precise. My kind of coach. He was very nice about it when he let me go. He seemed to know I had something to go to."

He got to keep the car and, shortly thereafter, drove to Boston for a completely different experience, training camp with Arnold Auerbach and the five-time NBA champs. Thirteen-odd years and eight rings later, Red was heard to gush, "John Havlicek is what I always thought a Celtic should be."

One of his opponents, Jim Washington of the Hawks, pointed out that the Celtics eventually took on the identity of their unmatched star. "They are one and the same,” Washington said. "He gives them leadership and inspiration, and their style of play is his style. It is a rare, beautiful thing."

During Havlicek’s very first training camp with the Celtics, Red was sitting in the stands watching his prized rookie with unabashed awe. Having taken a chance drafting the unheralded OSU graduate late in the first round, Red reportedly turned to a friend and said, “Oh, have I got something here. Are they gonna think I’m smart?”

What Red was watching on the court was a classic collision of youth and experience. Hondo, fresh out of Cleveland Browns training camp, looked across and saw Jungle Jim Loscutoff, grizzled veteran of the parquet wars, built like a middle linebacker, tough, cagy, and strong, nicknamed The Enforcer, outweighing Havlicek by thirty or more pounds. Whenever Hondo got within reach of Jungle Jim, there were pushes and shoves, flaring elbows and hard looks flying in his direction.

Havlicek may have been a rookie, but he knew exactly how to respond. He ran and ran some more, darting and dodging, he ran with fleetness of foot, cutting around picks and in and out of traffic. Loscy couldn’t hit what he couldn’t catch and before too long, he was huffing and puffing and giving the rookie a different sort of look.

As the two players lined up for a free throw, Loscy, breathing hard, blurted out, “Hey, you’re crazy! Nobody runs like that. Slow down.”

Havlicek, as wily a rookie as there ever was, looked at Loscy and replied, “Quit pushing me around, and I’ll quit running so hard.” The deal was sealed and the promise was kept, but only in practice.

Former OSU teammate, Bobby Knight summed up his career this way. "In my opinion, John Havlicek is the greatest basketball player who ever lived, bar none. I'm not saying he has more ability, I'm saying he's the greatest player, because he can beat you so many ways, and nobody, nobody goes as hard for as long as he does."

Havlicek gets the final word: "I knew from the first time I played this game that the toughest guy to score on was the guy who kept after me all the time, nose-to-nose, basket-to-basket. The opposite is also true. The toughest guy to defend against is the guy who keeps running. Who never lets up. never lets you relax. Who sneaks one in on you the first time you drag your feet. I never worried about the physical part, killing myself running or anything like that. I read once where a doctor said you'd pass out before you did any real damage. I never passed out."

Spike

thanks for the read ....but wasn't it BOBBY Knight not Billy?or were there 2 Knights?

And as you all know Hondo will always be MY favorite all time Celtic!

beat

Spike,

Great read and a good learning moment for everybody.

Ray Allen isn't as physical as Hondo was (he wasn't Loscy, but he wasn't a wimp neither) but Ray Allen is the same type of perpetual motion machine that Havlicek was. There are times when I just watch Ray. He stops only long enough for his man to become a bit distracted by the action nearer the ball and then, poof, he's gone. There were good reasons why SVG put JJ Redick on Ray and not VC. He needed a 25 year old to keep up with our 35 year old.

Doc needs to give this read to every rookie on the team (Bradley too). Back this up with some confirmation by Ray, and they could have long and successful NBA careers.

bob

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beat - thanks. How'd that get by?

bob - Havlicek saying the "toughest" guys to score on and defend against are guys who never let up, never stop running. He would know.

There are Ray Allen, Rip Hamilton, and very few others on the NBA scene these days. Off the top of my head, I can't think of any.

I keep sayin' and prayin' that someday Doc and Danny will bring in some of the old guys for a training camp clinic. I don't understand why not. It's wasted resource like no other.

Just the exposure of the young guys to those guys with all the rings, that alone would be worth the effort. Can you imagine Havlicek giving a clinic, even for one day, on moving without the ball? They'd remember it for the rest of their lives. Who knows, he may even pass on some advice that they can't get anywhere else?

One hates to think that the shabby attitude of the current ownership/management toward Sam Jones, for instance, which we have first-hand confirmation of, that the same shabby attitude is being shown towards all the rest of the oldtimers. It's foolish, if so. Those guys are a marketing bonanza, if management wanted to use them. Maybe they think they're too old. Maybe they think no one remembers them. Too bad.

From the day the Celtics drafted Havlicek, I sat in waiting for the Browns to cut him from their team. I had watched him play college ball and loved his game.
I was thrilled when he joined the Celtics, knowing full well he had so much to
show them. My devotion to him lasted through his entire career here. He worked with the Russell era teams, and, then the Cowens era teams, winning titles with each group. My heart broke when they had "John Havlicek Day" at the Garden.
As far as the relationship of the old timers with the present owners, where is this coming from? It seems when anything big is about to happen, one of them appears. Dave Cowens, John Havlicek, Russell, Sanders, who am
I missing?Some are under contract with other teams.

I am sorry to disagree with you here, but I feel the present Celtic organization has gone out of its was to welcome some of the old timers.

Maybe it's a case of me wishing things could be the way they used to be. Some players were regulars at the old Garden: Loscy and Conley, to name two. Red kept a fridge full of beer, a buffet table in his office and former Celtics were encouraged to show up. It was part of the making of the team into a family, and, it was really important to Red. Why? I can't say, but you gotta pay attention to something Red took that seriously.

There were more parties in the old days: retirement parties, banner-raising celebrations, number-raisings, - sure, there are reasons for all that, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to have fun. I've suggested before that the team should celebrate Red's birthday every year. It's in late August and a great way to begin a new season. It would be a well-deserved tribute, something no other team could do, a tradition that celebrates the past while looking ahead to the future, one of those living monuments that are more suitable than statues, and, an event all former Celtics would be welcome to attend. What are the chances of something like this happening? If only Red were here.

My biggest knock is not on Wyc but Danny and Doc. Guys like Havlicek, Russell and Cousy have information the current players need, the kind of input you can't get anywhere else. They're knowledgeable, they radiate strength of character, and they actually make you feel better being around them. So why aren't they being used as tutors, holding clinics, or even giving individual instruction? Wouldn't you love to see Cousy show up at training camp (if there is one) and start whispering in Rondo's ear?

Cousy moved to Florida a while ago, giving up his job as an analyst on television (comcast) Frankly, at times, he drove me nuts. He was so critical of the young guys. I really do think it was his choice to leave. I believe when they are in Florida for a regular season game, there are times when he will be on the telecast.

I have no idea what KC is doing, but he was a coach here for years, Bird is involved in Indiana, McHale now down in Houston, Walton on television when he wants to be.

You are right about Red-I would like something, I don't know what, acknowledging his importance to this organization. I can remember when
a player would retire, the sports announcer on channel 5 would make
up a video to music, showing the great moves of that player. I can still remember Havlicek's --- It was done to the song "Nobody does it better"
by Carly Simon. It was about five minutes long, and it was unbelieveable
I think it was Don Gillis who used to do it. It was a great treat.

So you see, I do appreciate everything the old timer's did for us, I guess
this generation just wants to make it on their own!!!!

You

I'm not sure why this seems so hard to get... Everybody has money, pretty nice facilities, etc., etc. What sets a few of the teams apart from the rest would be their history, especially of successes and a family kind of atmosphere. Why is that hard to understand? The Celtics, the Lakers, the Yankees and a handful of teams have the chance to have this. If I was in front office of one of these teams, it seems like a no brainer to me, to cultivate this.

Rosalie,

I'm afraid I'm at least partly responsible for spreading the word that the Celtics of recent years have basically frozen out a lot (certainly not all) of the older players. Sam Jones is one, as his recent comment (which I've seen in at least two or three different places) attests. "I don't go where I'm not invited" is a very revealing response when a guy who never complains is asked why he's not in Boston more often.

Moreover, when I mentioned this to Jackie MacMullan when I was sitting next to her at a Red Sox event, she not only corroborated my suspicion but also said, "And he's far from the only one." I didn't ask her who else might be involved because that would have been inappropriate at the time. But it's not all that difficult to make some guesses.

Yes, we see John Havlicek, Sanders, and JoJo White at ball games. It's easy for them; I believe they live in the Boston area at least during a major part of the year. I believe all the old, number-raising-worthy Celtics received lifetime passes for Celtics games. Only a few of them go out of their ways to attend games in Boston.

We do see Russ at some games. He is paid by the Celtics to do that, according to Jackie. And, of course, Heinsohn and Ainge are automatic.

But we rarely, if ever, see Frank Ramsey, K.C. Jones, Jim Loscutoff, Bill Sharman, Gene Conley, Dave Cowens and Robert Parish. Was Siggy around when he was alive? (I'm omitting Cooz, who has to look after his ailing wife, and Larry and McHale, who are otherwise occupied in the front office and on television respectively.)

I believe present ownership of the Celtics is definitely committed to putting the best possible team on the floor and has been very good about spending accordingly. I believe present ownership of the Celtics is also committed to putting their own signature on the team. They do not disregard all the old players; in fact, whenever guys like Havlicek and Satch show up for a game, I'm sure it's mandated that they be shown on television. But I believe that sort of thing is carefully controlled in order to wean fans away from strong identification with the past and solidify identification with the present.

That's why I'd be shocked if the Celtics ever held something like "alumni weekend," giving the old players a chance to get together, be interviewed, and perhaps even mingle with today's players. That's why I'd be shocked if the Celtics would emulate the Red Sox and video lengthy interviews with older players, with the specific objective of archiving greatness in Celtics history. (My best friend, Dick Flavin, conducted those Red Sox interviews, and excerpts were played on a Red Sox television show each week for several months.)

A couple of years ago, I had what I thought was a great idea. How about a televised series of luncheon discussions, perhaps hosted by Mike Gorman, with each discussion including an "oldie" and a "contemporary" at the same position?

I would envision five or six such discussions:

Cousy and Rondo
Sam and Ray
Havlicek and Pierce
Russell and KG
Heinsohn and Glen Davis
(Back when I was thinking about it, I would have included Parish and Perk.)

Imagine the footage that could be interspersed with conversation on how the positions were/are played then and now, tricks of the trade, philosophy of playing the game, introducing creativity into the game, etc., etc., etc.

Wouldn't it be great if all those discussions were "in the can" and could be played, one a week (maybe repeated several times during the week), during these greed-induced doldrums? And what about a boxed set of the shows, perhaps with proceeds benefiting a charity or a players' pension fund? Maybe other teams would even follow suit, and the league office would be stupid not to get into the act and support such a venture very strongly.

But, after considering the idea for a while, I realized that ownership, despite occasional grand gestures and lip service to the contrary, really wants to control things so that the focus is increasingly on the present and less on the past. Including old-timers in such a television venture could undermine those oh-so-subtle efforts; and god forbid the old-timers (bolstered by carefully selected videos) would make such sense that fans might question the some of the merits of today's game and the value they receive for their expenditures.

Enough rambling for now,

Sam