Hall of Fame Professional Basketball Player. He played both the small forward/shooting guard position for the National Basketball Association's Boston Celtics from 1962 to 1978. Born John Joseph Havlicek, he played basketball collegiately at the Ohio State University and played on the Buckeyes' 1960 NCAA championship team. He also was a consensus second-team All-American in 1962 and third-team All-American in 1961. He was selected by the Boston Celtics with the seventh pick in the 1962 NBA Draft and went on to be a mainstay of the Celtics' championship teams of the 1960s and 1970s. Nicknamed "Hondo," he revolutionized "the sixth man" role and was immortalized with the words "Havlicek stole the ball" from announcer Johnny Most during the 1965 NBA Eastern Conference finals. He starred for the Celtics for sixteen years before retiring after the 1977-1978 season. During his career, he was named a 13-time NBA All-Star, 4-time All-NBA First Team, 7-time All-NBA Second Team, 5-time NBA All-Defensive First Team, 3-time NBA All-Defensive Second Team, and NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1963. He also was named the MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the 1974 NBA Finals. His career statistics included 26,395 points, 8,007 rebounds, and 6,114 assists in 1,270 games played. He has been considered one of the greatest players in basketball history. He played on 8 NBA championship teams. After retiring in 1978, the Celtics immediately retired his number 17. In 1984, he was honored with induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He was also named to both the NBA's 35th and 50th Anniversary teams. His alma mater, the Ohio State University, also honored him by retiring his number 5. He passed away after a battle with Parkinson's disease.