View From The Rafters: Behind the Scenes with the Boston Celtics

With the college basketball tournament well underway, former collegiate stars and current players within the Celtics organization Payton Pritchard and Denzel Valentine join the show to look back on their tournament experiences. Pritchard appeared in two tournaments as a member of the Oregon Ducks, including a run to the national semifinals back in 2017 that ended in heartbreaking fashion. Valentine, meanwhile, played in four tournaments as a. member of the Michigan State Spartans, including a trip to the national semifinals and being shocked in the first round by 15th-seeded Middle Tennessee in 2016. 1:20 – Payton Pritchard joins the pod 3:20 – Pritchard remembers his close second-round game against Rhode Island, and why it mattered 4:40 – Pritchard dives into the experience of playing at the Final Four 5:37 – The discussion goes deep into Oregon’s gut-wrenching, semifinal loss to UNC in 2017 10:50 – Denzel Valentine joins the pod and explains what it’s like playing in the NCAA tournament 16:15 – The conversation begins to detail Valentine’s experience as Michigan State was shockingly upset in the first-round in 2016 by 15th-seeded Middle Tennessee 21:58 – Valentine speaks on the lack of pressure small schools and lower seeds feel when playing big programs, and how that leads to upsets 25:50 – Valentine remembers his experience as Michigan State made a run to the Final Four during his junior year 29:45 – What’s it like playing for Tom Izzo in a tournament? Valentine explains 32:00 – Valentine speaks about his brother, Drew, who coached his team at Loyola-Chicago to the tournament this yearSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In celebration of Women’s History Month, we’re proud to deliver our first-ever all-female podcast episode featuring a handful of accomplished women and trailblazers in the basketball world. Abby Chin and Amanda Pflugrad host and bring in Big East Commissioner and the first president of the WNBA Val Ackerman, Connecticut Sun President Jen Rizzotti, and Boston Celtics scout and three-time national champion Ashley Battle. The group weaves through a long list of topics all centered around what it’s like to be a woman in the sporting world, and in particular, the world of basketball. 2:20 – Abby and Amanda welcome in their ridiculously impressive list of guests 3:35 – Val Ackerman explains the path she’s taken to becoming the Commissioner of the Big East 5:55 – Ashley Battle jumps in to tell the story of her career 7:55 – Jen Rizzotti rounds out the group by explaining how she came to be president of the Connecticut Sun 11:20 – Rizzotti and Battle explain how the WNBA bubble empowered the players of the league 15:00 – Ackerman states her ‘four buckets’ between the connection of women and sports 18:00 – Ackerman recalls an experience that scarred her and proved to her just how much more work needs to be done within FIBA to embrace women in basketball 23:43 – The group discusses the challenges women face of having a family while trying to build their careers 28:15 – The group gives advice on how to overcome challenges while discussing their own stories 32:40 – Allison Feaster, the Celtics’ Vice President of Player Development and Organizational Growth, is discussed amongst the group 36:05 – Rizzotti reveals her perspective on women in the workforceSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a Kevin Garnett Mega Pod! Ahead of the retirement of KG’s No. 5 on March 13, we hit the Garnett story from all angles. First by bringing in two of his former teammates in Eddie House and James Posey to explain what it’s like to be KG’s teammate. Next by bringing in Wyc Grousbeck to break down how the Garnett megadeal came together back in 2007. And last but not least, the man who is credited with discovering KG, William “Wolf” Nelson, who coached Garnett in high school at Farragut Academy and has been alongside KG ever since, joins the pod to talk about Garnett’s early years and how the two first met back in the day at the Nike All-American camp. 4:00 – Eddie House and James Posey join the pod 5:00 – House and Posey comment on how the Kevin Garnett trade influenced them to sign with Boston, and how House recruited Posey to the team 8:45 – House and Posey explain what it’s like being KG’s teammate for the first time 10:20 – Posey tells the story of when Doc Rivers told KG that KG would be fined if he stepped on the practice court 14:00 – House recalls how KG used to get himself amped up before every single game and every single practice 15:50 – The two former Celtics reveal the time before a game when they knew not to speak to KG anymore because he was in the zone 18:15 – Celtics lead owner Wyc Grousbeck joins the pod and reveals when and how he told KG that he wanted to retire KG’s No. 5 22:20 – Grousbeck recalls the preparation that went into the Celtics preparing for and completing a trade for KG back in 2007 25:30 – Marc and Wyc recall the story that Paul Pierce told Wyc during a free throw against Minnesota back in 2006 that KG was Boston’s missing piece 27:00 – Grousbeck comments on the lasting impact Garnett made and left on the Celtics 31:08 – KG’s high school coach at Farragut, William “Wolf” Nelson, joins the pod 33:00 – Nelson recalls when and how Garnett first moved to Chicago, and what made him allow KG to play an unconventional style of basketball for a big man 37:00- Nelson remembers the famous KG pre-Draft workout, and when he first told Garnett to not restrain his emotions on the court 42:00 – Nelson recalls when he first saw Kevin Garnett at the Nike All-American camp 49:30 – Nelson compared Garnett to Jack and the Beanstock 52:30 – Marc and Grande reconvene to break down the pod interviews 56:30 – What were plan rides and hotel experiences like with KG? Competitive. Loud. Profane. Marc and Grande remember their experiences alongside the Big Ticket 1:00:00 – Wait… KG. turns elevator rides into competitions? 1:05:30 – Grande gives context to KG’s defensive greatnessSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Derrick White’s road to becoming a member of the Boston Celtics is one of the most unique paths you’ll ever hear. During this episode, he takes you deep into the moment when Gregg Popovich knocked on his door on the day of the trade deadline, and what ensued during the minutes, hours and days afterward. Later on, he dives into his story of being told over and over again during high school that he wasn’t good enough to play D1 ball while not having a single scholarship offer. Then he details his redemption story of flipping that script over the course of the next few years to spur many basketball minds, including Chauncey Billups, to tell him that he had a chance to make it in the NBA. 0:33 – Marc and Sean open up the show by discussing their initial reaction to the Derrick White trade 3:33 – Derrick White joins the conversation and tells us how he’s settling into Boston and what his trade experience was like 5:30 – White recalls the specifics of Gregg Popovich calling him as the trade deadline approached to ask him for his room number, and what ensued afterward – including notifying his pregnant wife 9:20 – White details how he’s been helped by the fact that multiple former Spurs staff members, including Ime Udoka and Will Hardy, are now on Boston’s staff 11:14 – White recalls the moment he first checked into a game as a member of the Celtics 13:40 – White again discusses his preexisting relationships with Ime Udoka and Will Hardy 17:30 – The conversation returns to discussing White’s relationship with Gregg Popovich and what it’s like to play for the legendary coach 21:15 – White goes into detail on his fascinating story of turning from an unrecruited high school player into an NBA player 26:45 – White reveals when he began to believe that he could make it to the NBA 28:15 – White comments on his relationship with his father, who grew up a Celtics fan 31:00 – Marc asks White about his passion for supporting the Special Olympics and those with special needsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The relationships on the Boston Celtics’ coaching staff run deep - like, back to middle school and high school deep. Ime Udoka, Damon Stoudamire, Ben Sullivan and Aaron Miles all hail from Portland, Oregon, and in this episode, they turn back the clock to recall the stories of how they all first met, and to discuss how they all wound up in Boston together and coaching the Celtics. 0:50 – Marc opens up a conversation with Ime Udoka and Damon Stoudamire about growing up in Portland and the Portland hoops community 4:15 – Udoka explains why chose to bring in many of his friends from Portland to be members of his very first coaching staff 6:25 – Stoudamire explains his decision to leave his head coaching job at Pacific and join Udoka’s staff in Boston 10:40 – Udoka and Stoudamire recall some of their interactions from back in the day, including Stoudamire beating Udoka’s brother in a nationally-televised game that Mike Breen announced 19:35 – Udoka and Stoudamire begin to discuss other Portland natives who are on the coaching staff, including Aaron Miles and Ben Sullivan 23:10 – Udoka recalls the story of how he god Sullivan his first NBA job, with the Spurs 26:00 – Udoka explains why he pursued specific coaches to be a part of his staff, and what his pitch was to each as to why they should leave their previous teams to join him 31:50 – Aaron Miles and Ben Sullivan explain what made them leave their previous jobs to join Udoka in Boston 37:50 – Miles and Sullivan discuss the importance of being on a coaching staff with people they know and trust 40:00 – The group comments on how so much basketball talent comes out of such a small market like Portland 44:45 – Miles remembers watching Udoka lose the state championship at Jefferson High, and then winning it for Jefferson High just a handful of years later 50:45 – Sullivan discusses playing basketball at three different high schools and how he is the guy who changed the game for big men around the world 57:15 – Miles dives into the inspiration he and his peers got from guys like Terrell Brandon and Damon Stoudamire back in the day 1:00:30 – Miles, a former teammate of Udoka’s in the D-League, comments on the difference between coaching with Udoka and playing with UdokaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The NBA’s Executive Vice President of Global Events, Kelly Flatow, joins Marc D’Amico and Abby Chin to reveal the logistics that go into building All-Star weekend every year, some of her favorite All-Star memories, and she dives into some of the new events and celebrity performances that are taking place this weekend in Cleveland. Marc and Abby also discuss Jayson Tatum’s upcoming All-Star start, as well as Isaiah Thomas’ first All-Star game, and Marc somehow finding his way into the exclusive TNT Party at Chicago All-Star weekend. 1:25 – Marc and Abby discuss what they’re looking to learn about All-Star weekend from the NBA’s EVP of Global Events, Kelly Flatow 4:05 – Marc recalls his favorite memory from his All-Star weekend experiences 8:06 – Marc and Abby welcome Kelly Flatow to the conversation 10:21 – Kelly dives into the logistics that go into putting together All-Star weekend 17:35 – Kelly discusses the process of booking musical performers for All-Star weekend, and who will be performing in Cleveland 19:58 – The crew gets a preview of a new NFT art gallery the league is launching at All-Star weekend in Cleveland, and other new events the league is putting on 22:28 – Kelly recalls the moment she and her team were locked in a room in New Orleans as they and the league worked to move All-Star weekend from Charlotte to New Orleans 23:58 – Marc and Abby hit Kelly with a list of rapid fire questions, including best party at All-Star weekend 27:13 – Kelly drops her secret of something we might not otherwise know about Commissioner Adam Silver 31:58 – Marc describes what the exclusive TNT Party at NBA All-Star is like, and how he worked his way into the one in 2020 in Chicago 36:16 – Marc and Abby preview Jayson Tatum’s upcoming weekend at All-Star in Cleveland See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Al Horford was a silent leader during his first stint in Boston, but he has been more vocal this season. What changed? We get the answers to that question, plus Rob Williams and Grant Williams join the pod to give their perspective on Horford’s leadership and influence on them as young players. Horford then joins the conversation to speak about how he views NBA leadership through his own eyes. 1:12 – Marc and Abby preview their conversation with Rob Williams and Grant Williams 3:08 – Marc and Abby preview their conversation with Al Horford 5:10 – Rob Williams and Grant Williams join the conversation to discuss veteran leadership in the NBA 6:55 – Grant Williams on the advice he has sought from Al Horford, and he remembers the first time he ever met Horford 8:35 – Rob Williams on how Horford influenced him after a rough start to Williams’ career 11:15 – Rob Williams reveals his nickname for Horford 14:50 – Grant Williams reveals what he heard about Horford before Horford’s return to the Celtics 16:15 – What qualifies a player as an “OG” in the NBA? 16:45 – Grant Williams discusses the tricks of the trade he’s learned from watching Horford 19:00 – Grant Williams and Rob Williams compare Horford’s style of leadership to Gordon Hayward’s 23:30 – Horford on his return to Boston and what makes the Celtics “different” 26:30 – Horford on how he has changed from his first stint in Boston to his second stint 31:45 – Horford discusses what he tries to teach his young teammates 32:27 – Horford comments specifically on Rob Williams ‘and Grant Williams’ growth as players 36:30 – Horford on when he developed his leadership style 41:00 – Horford on what initiated him to become a more vocal leader this season 44:30 – Is Horford thinking about coaching in future? 47:20 – What it means to Horford that he has played a role in young players finding their way in the league See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To celebrate the release of the full 75th Anniversary All-Celtics Team squad, we brought three of the top 75 players of all-time and three members of the team in Bob Cousy, Dave Cowens and Paul Pierce onto the pod. This is the only podcast you can find that connects all 75 years of Celtics lineage together, from the voices who experienced it all first-hand. 0:35 – Marc and Sean intro S2E1 and the 75th Anniversary All-Celtics Team members who will join the episode as guests 2:53 – Bob Cousy joins the conversation and tells the unique story about how he wound up playing for the Boston Celtics 8:13 – Cousy on his relationship with Arnold “Red” Auerbach 12:53 – Cousy discusses his teammates and compared playing point guard to an art form 20:03 – Cousy remembers his ‘Houdini’ skills and playing in the NBA’s first All-Star game, which was played at Boston Garden 23:53 – Cousy describes what made the Big Three so special during the 1980s 27:22 – Dave Cowens joins the conversation and responds to being chosen to the 75th Anniversary All-Celtics Team 28:25 – Cowens remembers playing with John Havlicek and Jo Jo White 29:40 – Sean Grande asks how aware Cowens was of the history he was walking into with the Celtics back in 1970 30:50 – Cowens compared the game environment in the 70s to the game environment today 35:15 – Cowens on the pressure of trying to win titles in Boston 38:40 – Cowens recalls the 1974 championship series against Milwaukee 42:30 – Cowens on making the 75th Anniversary Team alongside his longtime coach, Tommy Heinsohn 45:10 – Cowens tells the story of when Larry Bird first joined the Celtics in 1979 51:03 – Paul Pierce joins the conversation and reacts to yet another accolade rolling in after his retirement 52:20 – Pierce recalls his first memory with the Celtics organization 55:00 – Pierce discusses how he, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen motivated each other behind closed doors with their individual work ethics 58:05 – Pierce reacts to Ray Allen being named to the 75th Anniversary All-Celtics team 59:30 – Pierce’s dog joins the conversation 1:00:00 – Pierce recalls his understanding of the Celtics organization before being Drafted, and how blown away he was by the history once he got to Boston 1:03:00 – Pierce tells the story of going out to dinner with Bill Russell for the first time 1:04:30 – Pierce on the environment around the team when it reached the 2002 Eastern Conference Finals 1:06:30 – Pierce on the importance of creating a legacy with one organization See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Get to know the 18th head coach in Celtics franchise history in this in-depth conversation about how and when Brad Stevens approached him for the job and what crafted him into the coach and person he is today.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From the moment Doc Rivers first heard it, to the moment it helped to secure a record 17th World Championship banner, this is the story of the birth of Ubuntu within the 2008 Boston Celtics. We're ending Season 1 with a bang - audio documentary style! Hear from a long cast of Celtics Legends, including Rivers, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Wyc Grousbeck, who come together to tell this complete story like it's never been told before.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.