Today in Celtics history: McCarty, DeClerq born, Kite waived
McCarty, selected 19th in the 1996 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks, played 35 games there before being traded to the Celtics in October of 1997. He would play in Beantown for eight seasons, the last of which saw him traded to the Phoenix Suns, his second-to-last stop before leaving the league as a player (he would play 36 more games his final season - 2005/06 - for the Los Angeles Clippers). While never a star, Walter was always a solid force off the bench, averaging 5.7 points and 2.8 boards per game in his time in green.
Walter had a life off the court, too. He was one of two Celts in Spike Lee's film "He Got Game" (along with Ray Allen), and, after leaving the league, he would release a soul album called "Moments for Love". He would later join Boston as an assistant coach in 2013, a position he still holds.
It is also the birthday of former Celtic center Andrew DeClercq, who turns 44. DeClerq - who was a teammate of McCarty's for the 1996/97 season - played his college ball at Florida (my alma mater!) before being drafted 34th in the 1995 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors. He played two seasons for that club before signing with the Celts in 1997. Like Walter, Andrew was a solid rotation guy in Boston, averaging 5.4 points and 4.8 boards per game. He'd continue on in the league playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic before retiring in 2005.
The first of February is the anniversary of former Celtics forward Fred Saunders being traded to the New Orleans Jazz for a 1978 second round pick that would eventually become Jeff Judkins. Saunders spent two seasons playing for Boston after signing as a free agent in 1976, averaging 5.1 points and 2.8 boards per game with the club.
It's also the anniversary of the Celts waiving former center Greg Kite, after five seasons with the club. Drafted 21st by Boston in the 1983 NBA Draft, Kite was a deep rotation guy who never really panned out for the Celts, though he became a quality bench option later in his career. Here's a short clip of Kite describing his latter years in Boston:
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Data via basketball-reference.com
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