BOSTON — On paper, Sunday’s afternoon game between the Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks was just another NBA game between two Eastern Conference foes missing two star players. The Celtics walked away with a 107-79 win behind big-time games from Jaylen Brown (30 points, 13 rebounds) and Anfernee Simons (27 points), while the Bucks racked up their 5th consecutive loss.
But at TD Garden, it felt like anything but a normal game. That’s because Sunday marked the first-ever Pioneers Classic, a game facilitated
by the NBA and meant to honor the legacies of the league’s first Black players.
In truth, the NBA has concocted so many tournaments and themed games over the years that some theoretically lose their significance. But celebrating the 75th anniversary of three NBA Pioneers — Chuck Cooper, Earl Lloyd, and Nathaniel “Sweetwater” Clifton — felt particularly authentic, in large part due to its intentional execution.
Chuck Cooper was the first Black player to be drafted into the NBA, being selected by the Celtics in 1950. Earl Lloyd, meanwhile, was the first to actually play in an NBA game, while Nathaniel Clifton was the first to sign an NBA contract. All three former players had family members in attendance at TD Garden, and were recognized on multiple occassions throughout the game.
Beginning this year, the NBA Pioneers Classic will be played annually on February 1 to commemorate the start of Black History Month and celebrate the legacy of the NBA’s Pioneers. Jaylen Brown, who addressed the crowd before tip-off, finished as the inaugural game’s leading scorer and ultimately received the Pioneer’s Classic trophy.
“It was awesome,” Brown said after the game. “It’s pretty cool to be able to pay homage to people of the past. I’m a person who loves to pay my respects. So to know where you’re going, you’ve got to know where you came from. I thought the NBA did a good job of honoring some of those guys.”
Inside a special Sunday afternoon at TD Garden
The attention ahead of the Pioneers Classic was evident; 1950 patches were etched onto every player’s jersey, and the words ‘Cooper’, ‘Clifton’, and ‘Loyd’ embroidered in their warm-ups. ESPN’s broadcast spotlighted the game’s all-Black production crew, and an all-Black referee crew officiated the contest.
Most notably, the building was filled with the families of former Celtics legends. Bill Russell’s daughter, Karen Russell, and Red Auerbach’s granddaughter, Julie Auerbach, embraced at center court during a timeout break. Eight-time Celtics champion Satch Sanders was in attendance, as was the family of Celtics legend KC Jones.
And, current Celtics got involved in the action; Jordan Walsh met with families pregame, while Brown met with several after the game.
“History is one of my favorite subjects,” Brown said. “Obviously, I know a lot about Celtics history from their inception, from Red Auerbach to KC Jones, to Larry Bird, to Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, and here we are now. So a lot of history, a lot of great players have played for this organization — so it’s an honor to continue.”
The event extended far beyond just recognition; the NBA Foundation and NBPA Foundation committed to donating $750,000 over the next five years to establish the NBA Pioneers Scholarship, supporting academic and athletic programs at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and presented one such scholarship during halftime.
Before the game, Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers, who served as the Celtics’ head coach for 9 years, spoke about his perspective on the groundbreaking event.
“What I think Pioneer Day represents, to me, is America,” Rivers said while donning a Pioneers Classics hoodie. “Red Auerbach is responsible for our achievements as much as anyone else. He didn’t see color — he wanted to make the league a better league, and he kept doing it with hiring Bill Russel as coach. You think about this city that’s had its ups and downs race-wise, but you have this one guy…”
“When you come here, and you coach here, boy, you really get what Red [Auerbach] was about. And so Pioneers’ Day, first game being here for me, obviously, being a coach here for 9 years, means a lot.”
Doc Rivers (again) condemns ICE shootings
In the backdrop of the inaugural Pioneers celebration was the reality of an increasingly-tense political climate surrounding the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, one that has led many in the NBA world to speak out about recent shootings.
Doc Rivers has been among the most outspoken. Before the game, the Bucks head coach was pressed about his previous comments deeming the recent of Renee Good by ICE a “straight-up murder” — and affirmed he stood by those comments entirely.
“I look at our league. I look at the NBA. We’re celebrating Pioneer’s Day today, right?” Rivers said. “And I look at our league and think (Hakeem) Olajuwon could have been taken off the streets.”
Rivers, who has long been one of the most outspoken voices in the NBA when it comes to social issues, explained he feels an imperative to speak out.
“I just feel like when I think things are morally wrong — it’s funny, I don’t get into the politics of the economy, who feels what President is better,” Rivers said. “It’s all going back and forth. I don’t get involved in that. I just think when things are morally wrong, it shouldn’t be me; it should be everybody in this room. It should be everybody if you feel strongly about it. What we see on the streets right now, you cannot morally feel good about that. No American can — and that’s why I speak out.”
Rivers said he’s aware that there can be ramifications to his outspokenness, and that he shares those with his players.
“I do tell our guys there are consequences,” Rivers. “You know, there was an Arthur Ashe, there was a Muhammad Ali, there was a Howard Cosell. They all spoke out, and some paid consequences for it. That’s just part of it.”
And in the backdrop of Pioneers Day, with families of trailblazers filling the stands, his comments seemed to carry extra weight.
Pioneers Day served as the latest bridge between past and present for the Celtics
For Joe Mazzulla, Sunday felt like a natural fit because it’s typical for the Celtics to have former players and coaches around the current team.
“The cool thing about us is we’re always having guys hang around,” Mazzulla said. “Those things just happen organically, because people from the past of the Celtics are around a lot, whether it’s at a gala dinner, whether it’s at practice, whether it’s at a game, whether it’s on the plane — we have history around us at all times.”
After the final buzzer sounded, Jaylen Brown connected with Michael Jones (the son of Sam Jones), Karen Russell (the daughter of Bill Russell), Bryna Jones (the daughter of KC Jones), among others. For him, those connections are energizing.
“Be able to connect with people from that came before, gives you information, gives you wisdom,” Brown said. “So, as you move forward, you know exactly what you need to do.”
The Celtics ultimately walked away with a blowout victory, and secured the Eastern Conference’s best net rating. But, Sunday afternoon carried more weight than conference standings.
“It’s a special day for a lot of reasons,” said Mazzulla, who caught up with several Celtics legend family members at halftime. “And I think it just put things in perspective about what it means to be a Celtic.”
“You always hear about the Celtics as a basketball team, but I think when you have Celtics as where we’re at in the community and where we’ve been, [I’m] just as proud to be a part of that.”
