page_title: History of the Boston Celtics
section_title: 1946–1956: Building the dynasty
hierarchical_section_title: History of the Boston Celtics / 1946–1956: Building the dynasty
caption_attribution_description: English: The 1956-57 Boston Celtics that won the first championship for the franchise.
context_page_description: The Boston Celtics are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. Founded in 1946 as a charter member of the Basketball Association of America, the Celtics then moved into the National Basketball Association in 1949, as said league was formed by the merger of the BAA merged with the National Basketball League. Currently playing in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference, the Celtics have the most NBA titles with 17 championships. Eleven of those occurred between 1957 and 1969, with a dynasty led by center Bill Russell and coach/general manager Red Auerbach. The Celtics won two more titles in the 1970s under coach Tom Heinsohn, and three more in the 1980s under the leadership of forward Larry Bird. After a 22-year drought, the Celtics got their latest title in 2008.
context_section_description: The Celtics were formed in 1946 as a team in the Basketball Association of America, and became part of the National Basketball Association after the merger of the BAA and the National Basketball League to form the NBA in the fall of 1949. In 1950, the Celtics became the first franchise to draft an African American player, signing Chuck Cooper.
  The Celtics had struggled during their early years, but the hiring of Coach Red Auerbach would change their fortunes. One of the first major players to join the Celtics was Bob Cousy, whom Auerbach initially refused to draft. Cousy eventually became the property of the Chicago Stags. When that franchise went bankrupt, Cousy was acquired by the Celtics in a dispersal draft. He would become a huge part of the Celtics' success and eventually became good friends with his new coach. Under Auerbach the Celtics improved dramatically, becoming a consistent threat to win in the NBA's Eastern Division in each of his first six seasons, although they fell short each time.
  After the 1955–56 season, Auerbach made a stunning trade. He sent perennial All-Star Ed Macauley to the St. Louis Hawks along with the draft rights to Cliff Hagan in exchange for the Hawks' first round draft pick, the second overall.  After negotiating with the Rochester Royals, Auerbach used the pick to select University of San Francisco center Bill Russell. Auerbach also acquired Holy Cross standout, and 1957 NBA Rookie of the Year, Tommy Heinsohn. Russell and Heinsohn worked extraordinarily well with Cousy, and they were the players around whom Auerbach would build the Celtics for more than a decade. Russell, who delayed joining until the middle of the 1957 season in order to play for the U.S. Olympic Team, had an immediate impact.
caption: The 1956–57 team that won the first championship for the franchise.
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