Celtics to add GE logo on their iconic jersey
BOSTON — Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck was expecting more of a fight when he and his partners approached franchise patriarch Red Auerbach about having cheerleaders perform at games.
The Celtics were the lone NBA holdout without a dance squad in 2006, and the longtime coach and general manager was famously crotchety about anything that took attention away from the game itself. But instead of arguing, Grousbeck said, Auerbach listened to the sponsorship possibilities and said, “You’ve got to pay the bills.”
The NBA’s most decorated franchise got a little more decorated Wednesday when the Celtics announced a deal to put a General Electric advertisement on the team’s uniform. One of sports’ most traditionladen institutions, the 17-time NBA champions will begin wearing the GE logo next season on a primary uniform that has remained relatively constant since the league formed in 1946.
“At the Celtics, we think about Red Auerbach, Bill Russell and Larry Bird,” Grousbeck said. “And now Thomas Edison.”
While racecars are plastered with ads and soccer teams wear sponsors’ brands where Americans would expect the team name to be, the NBA is dipping its toe into uniform advertising with a pilot program that allows a single 2½-by-2½ inch patch on teams’ jerseys, starting next season.
The Philadelphia 76ers and Sacramento Kings already have jersey deals with StubHub and Blue Diamond almonds.
Wednesday games
TRAIL BLAZERS 105, LAKERS 98: In Portland, Ore., Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum scored 24 points apiece to lead Portland past Los Angeles, giving the Lakers their second straight defeat. WARRIORS 113, HORNETS
103: In Charlotte, N.C., Kevin Durant scored 16 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter, and Stephen Curry added 28 points on six 3-pointers in his annual homecoming game as Golden State rallied to beat Charlotte two nights after losing in Miami. KINGS 116, CAVS 112 (OT): In Cleveland, Arron Afflalo dropped a 3-pointer with 17.3 seconds left in overtime, lifting Sacramento to a win over slumping Cleveland, which lost for the sixth time in eight games.
DeMarcus Cousins had 28 points and 10 rebounds for the Kings, who trailed by five in overtime before battling back.
In Cleveland, in the aftermath of calling Cleveland’s roster “top heavy” and questioning the organization’s commitment to winning a second championship following Monday’s loss in New Orleans, LeBron James met with the Cavaliers as a team and spoke one on one Wednesday with general manager David Griffin to discuss his assertions.
Griffin was not pleased James went public with his feelings and felt he demeaned some players.
“It wouldn’t have been my preferred method,” Griffin said. “It certainly wasn’t appropriate from a teammate perspective. But, it is what it is.”
James triggered a seismic reaction inside and outside Cleveland’s organization with the scathing comments he made to a small group of traveling beat writers after the Cavs lost to a Pelicans team missing All-Star Anthony Davis.
Meanwhile, ESPN and Newsday reported that the New York Knicks tried to engage the Cavaliers in a swap of Carmelo Anthony for power forward Kevin Love, but Cleveland turned them down. Anthony would have to approve any deal since he has a no-trade clause in his contract. 76ERS 114, BUCKS 109: In Milwaukee, despite playing without leading scorer Joel Embiid for the second consecutive game, Philadelphia held off Milwaukee to win for the fifth time in six games. GRIZZLIES 101, RAPTORS 99: In Memphis, Tenn., Marc Gasol scored a career-high 42 points, including the deciding two free throws with 36 seconds left, as Memphis beat Toronto. THUNDER 114, PELICANS 105: In New Orleans, Russell Westbrook had 27 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, passing Larry Bird with his 60th career triple-double, as Oklahoma City beat New Orleans.
HAWKS 119, BULLS 114: In Chicago, Dennis Schroder scored 24 points as Atlanta beat Chicago. MAVERICKS 103, KNICKS 95: In Dallas, Harrison Barnes scored 23 points and Seth Curry had 20 as Dallas beat New York.
HEAT 109, NETS 106: In New York, Dion Waiters scored 14 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, including the clinching 3 with 6.8 seconds left, as Miami overcame an 18-point deficit in the final period to beat Brooklyn. CELTICS 120, ROCKETS 109: In Boston, Isaiah Thomas had 38 points and nine assists as Boston beat Houston.