On this day: Chris Ford fired; Todd Mundt, Dave Popson born
On this day in Boston Celtics history, the Celtics fired their head coach Chris Ford in 1995. Ford had been with the team first as a player and later as part of the coaching staff since 1978, when he was traded from the Detroit Pistons as a player for Earl Tatum.
He would play for the Celtics for four seasons before retiring and returning to the franchise as an assistant coach in 1983. Ford would be elevated to the role of head coach in 1990, replacing then-head coach Jimmy Rodgers after a first-round playoff exit the season prior. Ford would amass a 222-188 regular-season record and a 13-16 postseason record with Boston.
Good for .541 and .448 winning percentages, respectively.
Happy birthday Todd Mundt! I never heard of until I was today's years old, but it says here you played 9 games for the Celtics in 1996 and apparently that's enough to get you a birthday shoutout on this feed. pic.twitter.com/Qs3Gbpx3NZ
— Honest☘️Larry (@HonestLarry1) May 17, 2020
It is also the birthday of former Celtic big man Todd Mundt, born in 1970 in Iowa City, Iowa.
A 7-foot center who went undrafted out of Memphis, Mundt played a stint with the Atlanta Hawks before turning a 10-day contract with Boston into a rest-of-season deal in 1996.
He would play just nine games with the Celtics, over which he would average 0.7 points, 0.3 rebounds, and 0.1 assists per game over that stretch.
Happy birthday Dave Popson! #Celtics pic.twitter.com/2aNSknLco2
— Honest☘️Larry (@HonestLarry1) May 17, 2021
Ex-Celtic center Dave Popson was also born today in 1964 in Kingston, Pennsylvania.
A 6-foot-10 big man who played his NCAA basketball with North Carolina, Popson was picked up with the 88th overall pick of the 1987 NBA draft (there were several more rounds in this era than there are today).
Dave Popson! RT @si_vault: Tricky Dee Brown throws a no-look pass during a 1990 Celtics-Bullets game: pic.twitter.com/dqwbCrQN7W
— Tommy Heinsohn Has A Posse (@csl_duke) July 26, 2013
Popson would play overseas before and between stints with the Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat before signing with Boston as a free agent in 1990.
He would play just the 1990-91 season with the Celtics, averaging 1.8 points, 0.7 rebounds, and 0.1 assists per game that campaign.
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