I planned to begin this post like this: “When Ed Macauley’s son became ill in 1956, it contributed to the Celtics’ acquisition of Bill Russell.”

Then, I read a CelticsBlog post by Roy Hobbs (who is either The Natural or this guy, preferably the former), who adamantly believes we need to remember Macauley for more than his departure from Boston, which — along with Red Auerbach’s creativity — allowed the team to draft Russell. Macauley’s a Hall of Famer, and Hobbs treats him as such.

Macauley was more than a trading chip.  He was the team’s first superstar.  If I told you there was only one player in Celtics history that had finished in the top ten in the NBA at varying times in his career in points per game, rebounds per game, and assists per game, how many of you would have guessed the answer was Larry Bird or John Havlicek?  Not so; it was Macauley.  Think about that for a minute:  a top ten player in points, rebounds, and assists.  He also finished top ten in FT% once, and led the league in FG% twice.  This is a player who was dominant, which explains why he was three times first-team All-NBA, and made the All-Star team all six years he was in Boston.

Ed Macauley could play. RIP.