Boston Celtics legend, franchise icon, and one of the greatest players in the storied franchise history, John Havlicek has died at the age of 79, the team announced on Thursday night.
Havlicek played all 16 years of his career with the Celtics where he earned NBA Finals MVP honors in 1974, was a 13-time NBA All-Star, and was named to 11 All-NBA teams and 8 All-Defensive teams over his tenure.
Havlicek was one of 10 players in NBA history to make at least eight All-NBA teams and eight All-Defensive teams, and one of nine players in NBA history to be an All-Star in 13 straight seasons.
Havlicek led the NBA in minutes played in both the 1970-1971 and 1971-1972 seasons.
“The thing with John, he competed against you at the highest level and he wanted to win badly,” Hall of Famer Jerry West said, according to ESPN. “But he was always a really nice person. I don’t think that I ever heard anyone say a bad word about John. He was pleasant off the court and pleasant on it. But he really, really competed against you.”