Reggie Lewis

Reggie Lewis (November 21 1965 – July 27 1993) was a basketball player for the Boston Celtics from 1987—1993. He averaged 20.8 points per game in each of his last two seasons with the Celtics, and finished with a career average of 17.6 points per contest. His #35 jersey was retired by the Celtics as a memorial to him.

Born in Baltimore, Lewis played his college ball in Boston at Northeastern University, where his retired uniform number now hangs in tribute in Matthews Arena.

Lewis played along side fellow Celtics greats like Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish. He became the sixth captain of the Celtics, taking over from Larry Bird. In his first and only year of leading the team, he brought the Celtics to the 1993 playoffs. In the first game of the playoffs against the Charlotte Hornets, his heart ailment (which would later claim his life) caused him to collapse.

Lewis died when he had a heart attack on the basketball court at an off-season practice in 1993 at Brandeis University in Waltham, MA. A March 1995 Wall Street Journal article alleged that his condition was brought about by use of cocaine, but these allegations have not been proven.

After his death, The Reggie Lewis Track and Field Center, was opened in Roxbury, Massachusetts. The center was funded partially by Lewis and routinely hosts major track and field competitions as well as home basketball games for Roxbury Community College.

Trivia

• Was selected to play in his first and only NBA All-Star Game held in Orlando, Florida, 1992, playing 15 minutes, scoring seven points and grabbing four rebounds.
• He is only player in the 59-year history of the Celtics to have registered 100 rebounds, 100 assists, 100 steals and 100 blocked shots in a single season (1991/92 with 394 rebounds, 185 assists, 125 steals and 105 blocks).
• Lewis was one of four players from the 1981-82 team of Dunbar High School in Baltimore to play in the NBA. The other three were Muggsy Bogues, then a fellow junior, Reggie Williams, then a senior and David Wingate, also a senior. The Dunbar team that season was so deep in talent that Lewis did not start. Reggie was the sixth man, which he was unhappy with despite the praise he received from his coaches and other players for his role as a valuable weapon off of the bench. While many other players were recruited by colleges nationwide, only Northeastern University pursued him. Reggie went to Northeastern, where he became the school's greatest player of all time. Reggie's greatest influence on people occurred off of the basketball court. Reggie had strong morals, humility and compassion. His life, a story of perseverance and strong family values as well as tremendous basketball potential that never reached its peak are chronicled in the book Reggie Lewis, Quiet Grace Written by Craig Windham.

• His number (35) is retired by the Boston Celtics and Northeastern University

External links

• Remembering Reggie... on Celtics.com
• Reggie Lewis Statistics
• Deadly Silence: How the Inner Circles, Of Medicine and Sports, Failed a Stricken Star
• Reggie Lewis' doctor defends self
• Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center
• Photos