John J. "Hondo" Havlicek is a retired American professional basketball player who competed for 16 seasons with the Boston Celtics, winning eight NBA titles, half of them coming in his first four seasons. In the NBA, only teammates Bill Russell and Sam Jones won more championships during their playing careers. Havlicek is considered one of the best NBA players in history, especially on defense, and was inducted as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1984. He was a three sport star at Bridgeport High School in Bridgeport, Ohio and one of his boyhood friends was... Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro. The Bridgeport High School Gymnasium was renamed the "John J Havlicek Gymnasium" in January 2007. He shares the honor with National High School Hall of Fame member Frank Baxter, a long time coach at Bridgeport High School. The court is named after Baxter.
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