On this day, former Boston Celtics big man Kelly Olynyk was born in 1991 in Toronto, Ontario, moving west to Kamloops, British Columbia in seventh grade.
Olynyk played his college ball at Gonzaga, and was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks 13th overall in the 2013 NBA Draft before being immediately dealt to the Celtics.
Olynyk would make the 2013-14 All-Rookie team, and would play for Boston for four seasons over which he averaged 9.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists.
The Canadian big man would leave the Celtics in free agency for the Miami Heat in the summer of 2017.
It is also the birthday of former Boston guard Gabe Pruitt, who was born on this day in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. Pruitt played at the NCAA level at USC, and was drafted by the Celtics with the 32nd overall pick of the 2007 NBA Draft.
The former Trojan spend most of his rookie season with Boston’s D League affiliate (the name of the G League in those years) at that time, the Utah Flash, but would get some run with the team in the 2008-09 season before being waived over the summer.
The Californian native logged 2 points, 0.8 rebounds and as many assists per game over his two-season career with the Celtics.
It is also the release date of the film Celtic Pride, which was released today in 1996.
Despite a star-studded cast featuring Dan Aykroyd, Damon Wayans and Daniel Stern with cameos by Larry Bird, Deion Sanders and Marv Albert, the film did poorly, and has been panned by critics for its questionable humor.
Today is also the anniversary of two first-round playoff wins since the season of Boston’s last championship in 2007-08.
The first is a 96-93 win over the New York Knicks in 2011 that gave the Celtics a 2-0 series lead despite a 42-point performance by Carmelo Anthony.
Point guard Rajon Rondo led the team with 30 points, Paul Pierce added 20, Ray Allen 18, and Kevin Garnett hit the game-winner with 14 seconds remaining, only to steal the ball on the next play to secure the win.
Boston also defeated the Indiana Pacers 104-96 in 2019 that gave the Celtics a 3-0 series lead behind shooting guard Jaylen Brown’s 23 points and 7 boards, point guard Kyrie Irving’s 19 points and 10 assists and forward Jayson Tatum’s 18 points and 7 rebounds.
“In Game 4, we expect [the Pacers] to take it to another level,” Jaylen Brown said via the Associated Press. “We’ve got to come out and not take our foot off the gas.”
