More on Red

A lot has been said about Red Auerbach in the last 24 hours and rightfully so. My favorite article thus far comes from the Boston Globe’s Bob Duffy. The piece looks at the birth of the victory cigar and Auerbach’s coaching tactics as well. Enjoy:

“Auerbach instructed his players that if they detected indecision on the part of a referee as to who was entitled to possession on an out-of-bounds call, they should run over and pick it up, conveying the impression that there was no doubt possession was theirs.

If the other team had a high scorer, Auerbach would tell his players to emphasize to the scorer's teammates that they were superfluous because he was taking all the shots.

When an official awarded the ball to the opponents, he'd order his players not to throw it directly to a player on the other team. Rather, they should throw it slowly to the official so the Celtics would have more time to get set on defense.

On the road, he would wait until the hosts started warming up and then request their basket, which is the visitor's prerogative.

Less delicately, Auerbach noted, grabbing or pulling on an opponent's uniform -- shirt or shorts -- could be a great distraction.” – Bob Duffy