Victory Puff

Red Auerbach smoked a cigar on the bench as K.C. Jones and Tommy Heinsohn watched along. Though it eventually became part of Auerbach’s legend, fellow coaches initially complained about his smoking habit. When requested to put a halt to the cigars, Auerbach recalled shooting back and asking, “what the hell is this, an airplane? Do you mean to tell me it’s OK for these old-timers like Joe Lapchick to smoke cigarettes, but no cigar for me? I kept doing it.”