Today in Boston Celtics history, The National Basketball Association (NBA), as we recognize it today, was founded in 1949, with the Boston Celtics serving as one of its foundational franchises. This league emerged from the merger of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball League (NBL), which should not be confused with the contemporary Australian league or other leagues sharing the same name. The Celtics had participated in the BAA since its establishment three years prior, a league primarily created by arena owners seeking innovative methods to fill their venues.
Boston benefited greatly from the merger of the two leagues via players they drafted from the dispersal drafts of teams that did not join the newly formed
NBA, like Ed Macauley. The new league had 17 teams playing in some of the larger arenas in the United States.
And while it lost a number of those teams in its first few seasons, it then slowly grew into the 30-team league we know today.
Transactions
It was also on this date in 1999 that Celtic forward Ron Mercer was traded with Popeye Jones and Dwayne Schintzius to the Denver Nuggets for Danny Fortson, Eric Washington, Eric Williams, and draft assets. Mercer had been drafted by Boston with the sixth overall pick of the 1997 NBA draft out of Kentucky and had played for Boston since, averaging 15.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game as a Celtic.
The trade that sent Boston big man Jerome Moiso to the Philadelphia 76ers for forward Roshown McLeod (who would be waived) also occurred today in 2001. The Parisian had been drafted out of UCLA by the Celtics with the 11th overall pick of the 2000 NBA draft and put up 1.5 points and 1.8 boards while with Boston.
Wayne Turner signed with Boston as an undrafted free agent on this date in 1999, having played his NCAA ball with Kentucky. The Boston native didn't stick with his hometown team, however -- he would be waived that November after scoring 1.3 points, a rebound, and 1.7 assists per game over three contests as a Celtic.
Birthdays
It is also the birthday of ex-Boston point guard Doug Overton, who came into this world in 1969 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Signing with the team in free agency in 1999, the LaSalle alum would play 48 games for the Celtics, in which he averaged 3.2 points and 1.1 assists.
Gone too soon
Finally, it is also the date that we lost Dick Hemric in 2017. The Wake Forest product was taken by Boston with the 12th overall pick of the 1955 NBA draft, and played two seasons with the Celtics, winning a title in a reserve role in 1957 -- Boston's first.
The Jonesville, North Carolina native averaged 6.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per game with Boston -- rest in peace.
This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Today in Boston Celtics history: NBA founded; Mercer, Moiso dealt; Overton born; Hemric RIP
