Boston Celtics great Tom Heinsohn passed away on November 9th. He came to the Celtics the same year that Bill Russell did and was the 1957 Rookie of the Year, a slight that Russell reportedly found difficult to overlook.
No matter.
Both were true Celtics, ultimately committed to winning and they won a lot. Heinsohn, uniquely, played in the finals every years of his career, something that no one, not even the great Russell, has ever matched.
He grew up in Jersey City, a great basketball town that later produced the Hurley family of coaches and decades of great players, and went to Holy Cross a few years after future Celtics teammate Bob Cousy graduated.