Red Auerbach Quote

Arnold Jacob "Red" Auerbach (September 20, 1917 – October 28, 2006) was an American professional basketball coach and executive. He was a head coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA), most notably with the Boston Celtics. He took his legendary Celtics team on an unprecedented championship run, winning eight straight NBA championships from 1959 to 1966.
Auerbach also served as the head coach of the Washington Capitols and Tri-Cities Blackhawks. As a coach, Auerbach set NBA records with 938 wins and nine championships. After his coaching retirement in 1966, he served as president and front-office executive of the Boston Celtics until his death. As general manager and team president of the Celtics, he won an additional seven NBA titles for a total of 16 in 29 years, the most of any individual in NBA history, making him one of the most successful team officials in the history of North American professional sports.
Auerbach introduced the fast break strategy as an offensive tool. This strategy is still widely used in basketball today and has evolved with the modern game. Teams prioritize pace and transition offense more than ever, and many aspects of Auerbach’s fast break philosophy are still fundamental.
He coached numerous players who went on to be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. The notable Hall of Fame players Auerbach coached include Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, and Bill Sharman.
Auerbach also played a key role in combating racial discrimination in the NBA. He made history by drafting the first African-American NBA player, Chuck Cooper, introducing the first African-American starting five, and hiring Bill Russell to be the first African-American head coach in North American sports in 1966. Auerbach was also famous for smoking a cigar when he thought a victory was assured, a habit that came to be known as "the ultimate symbol of victory" during his tenure in Boston.
In 1967, the NBA Coach of the Year award, which he won in 1965, was renamed the "Red Auerbach Trophy." Auerbach was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1969. In 1970, Auerbach was named president of the Celtics, a role he held until 1997. In 2001, after spending four years as the team's vice-chairman, he returned to the role of team president and served in that capacity until his death in 2006 at the age of 89. In 1980, he was named the greatest coach in the history of the NBA by the Professional Basketball Writers Association of America, and was NBA Executive of the Year in 1980. In addition, Auerbach was voted one of the NBA 10 Greatest Coaches in history, inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, and honored with a retired number 2 jersey at TD Garden, the Celtics' home.