Russell paid tribute to his former teammate on Twitter, reacting to the tragic news. He tweeted out, "It is getting difficult each time I hear about another contemporary that passes! What is harder is when we lose guys like John Havlicek, he was not just a teammate & a great guy, but he was family. That is how our @celtics teams were. #RIP Hondo @NBA #RIPJohnHavlicek @NBAonTNT"
It is getting difficult each time I hear about another contemporary that passes! What is harder is when we lose guys like John Havlicek, he was not just a teammate & a great guy, but he was family. That is how our @celtics teams were. #RIP Hondo @NBA #RIPJohnHavlicek @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/VP9MGPjrmZ
— TheBillRussell (@RealBillRussell) April 26, 2019
Sure, Havlicek had a fantastic career and is a Basketball Hall of Famer and all that, but if one had to pin his career down to one play, it's one of the most iconic in Celtics history. In the final game of the 1965 Eastern Conference Finals, Bill Russell turned the ball over with five seconds remaining. But as the Philadelphia 76ers tried to inbound the ball, Havlicek intercepted the pass, passed the ball to Sam Jones and the C's ran out the clock to secure the victory.
Definitely a sad time for Celtics fans. He had a fantastic career. Hopefully the C's can play in his honor in this upcoming series.