#3: Shoutout to all the Celtics fans Bleeding Green in CANADA! 🇨🇦

Hey Celtics fans in Canada! celticslife.com has had 2,261,125 visits from our neighbors just 311 miles north of Boston since we originated in September 2009, which has you at #3 on our most visited list. Thanks so much for all the love you've shown the site these past 10+ years.

Vanessa Williams and Rick Fox

The Celtics had their first Canadian born player back in 1991 when Rick Fox joined the team as a first round pick out of North Carolina. Fox would go on to have a solid career for the Celtics before Rick Pitino let him go in 1997 to open up cap space for some questionable big money signings like Travis Knight and Chris Mills. Fox went to Hollywood to join the Lakers, which worked out for him, since his his soon to be wife Vanessa Williams was a movie star.

Honestly once Fox became a Laker, I couldn't stand him any more. But as a Celtic, I remember him as a player that fit well the combination the early 90's Celtics had of veteran stars from the 80's and the younger Celtics. After Reggie Lewis passed away tragically, if I recall correctly I remember it hitting Fox and Dee Brown the hardest, since they were Reggie's closest friends on the team. On the court fir the Celtics I remember him having great hands. He was one of those defenders that played with his palms up which led to more steals.

The C's had 3 Canadian players in training
camp in 2014. Joel was traded before the
season began and Dwight at the deadline

In recent years the Celtics added four more Canadians, Joel Anthony, Dwight Powell, Kris Joseph and Kelly Olynyk. Dwight Powell was traded to there Mavs in the deal that sent Rajon Rondo away and brought Jae Crowder to Boston. I know that a lot of people liked Crowder on the Celtics (he got on. my nerves, especially with his whining about the Celtics interest in Gordon Hayward), but I was sad to see Powell go. Seemed like a good fit in the modern NBA and in Stevens offense as he was an uber athletic big who could shoot from deep. Powell has gone on to have a solid career in Dallas as a key rotation player.

Joel Anthony was basically a contract when he was acquired and barely played for the Celtics. He saw his greatest NBA success on the LeBron James era Miami Heat as one of their bigs. Kris Jospeh was a 2nd round pick that showed some flashes, but wasn't able to ever earn minutes or find a spot in the league.

Kris Joseph drives to the hoop
in Summer League action

Kelly Olynyk was a pretty controversial draft pick, mainly because the Celtics passed on Giannis Antetokounmpo to draft him. I remember Ainge tempering expectations on the Olynyk pick by saying he projected Kelly to be a NBA rotation player for many years. Not exactly the high ceiling you want in a draft pick when you're retooling. Those with green colored glasses saw a player that had a little of Dirk to his game and was a surprising good passer (so then you got the Larry Legend comps) and respectable dribbler for a big man.

You'd see glimpses from Olynyk in Boston, but he basically ended up as Ainge had drafted him to be, a solid rotation player. He did have a huge performance in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between the Celtics and Wizards which propelled Boston into the ECF and a match-up with the Cavs in 2017. Olynyk would parlay that game and a successful stint in Boston to a very lucrative long term deal with the Miami Heat, as the Celtics didn't attempt to re-sign him since they needed the cap space to go after Hayward.

Obviously Olynyk shouldn't receive any blame for Ainge passing on Giannis, who would have become such a game changer for the Celtics. For his slot in the draft Olynyk has carved out a nice career and has been one of the more successful players to play in the NBA from Canada. And in recent years the number of Canadian born NBA players continues to grow pretty significantly. In the past draft, I was hoping the Celtics would use one of their first rounders on Brandon Clarke, who oddly fell to the 20's, but Ainge traded down and out of the first round and the Grizzlies then traded up to snag Clarke right before Boston's choice at #22.

Based on the current trend of Canadians in the NBA, expect to see the Celtics bring in some more talent from up north in future years. Canada has the reputation for being a hockey country and I'm sure it is, but based on your impressive landing at #3 on our most visited list, there is definitely a lot of interest in basketball and the Celtics in particular.

Leave a comment and tell us a little bit about yourself if you wish. How you became a Celtics fan? Where in Canada you're representing? How you found out about celticslife.com and when you first started frequenting the site? Maybe a pic of you in some Celtics gear. You know, all that good stuff.

#3: Shoutout to all the Celtics fans Bleeding Green in CANADA! 🇨🇦

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