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Red Auerbach: Hothead on the Boston Bench, 1956

As provincial as the next town, Boston likes winning teams, and although the Celtics have been close many times, they’ve never taken the big prize. Some critics say it is Auerbach’s fault.

Pistol Pete: Just a Simple Man with Simple Ideals, 1974

This is what eats at Maravich’s brain. “Pistol” basketball is different, he calls it “futuristic.”

Pistol Pete Maravich Fires Back, 1975

There is a sparkle in his eye that is the tipoff that the Hawks may have provided Maravich with a cause. And that’s the last thing you’d want to do for a man with this kind of talent.

Jerry West: A Very Special Agony, 1970

The thing West does is not just play basketball brilliantly, but play it best when it counts the most. This is the rarest of things.

Forever on Tryout, 1980

Every time a man is waived, the odds of finding a job in the NBA decrease. Deserved or not, he gets a book, a rep that he can’t shake.

Charlie Criss: Guts and Elbows Basketball, 1977

Criss became known as “The Mosquito,” and it was not a phony alliterative or geographical title invented by a P.R. man. It was a high sign to Criss that even though there were guys on the playground nobody ever heard of, many of them could hold their own with the best in the NBA.

Dave Stallworth: ‘I’m One Lucky Man,’ 1970

A silver medallion hung around his neck and flew in and out of his practice uniform. Dave fingered it as he moved around the court. There were sweatbands on each of his wrists.

Kevin McHale: Superstar in His Own Right, 1989

This is Kevin McHale, who will turn 31 years old early in the 1988-89 National Basketball Association season, talking about his future.

Emmette Bryant: Living the NBA Dream, 1970

Now the world knows what Bryant did for the Celtics when he got a chance to play for them last winter. He steadied them for a playoff position, then produced many clutch moments in the burst to glory.

Rick Barry Rates His All-Time Opponents, 1980

As one of the few players who had the chance to play pro basketball in three different decades (the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s), it also was my fortune to play both against—and with—most of the great players produced by the National Basketball Association.