Gene Conley, a ‘genial giant’
Two-sport athlete won titles with Celtics and Braves
Though it’s been a while since you’ve seen his name in the papers, Gene Conley should not die unnoticed in Boston where he helped author some of the bellwether chapters of local sports history.
The genial giant, who died Wednesday at 86, was not unique in playing two professional sports. Bo Jackson did it. So did Deion Sanders, and Dave DeBusschere, and don’t forget Danny Ainge once played third for the Toronto Blue Jays.
But only Conley, 6-foot-8, earned championship rings in two sports, including the three he collected as Bill Russell’s backup center during a second tenure with the Shamrocks.
In 1961, just 14 days after helping the C’s vanquish St. Louis, the towering righty pitched the Red Sox to a 6-1 victory with Celtic teammates cheering him on from the stands.
Back in 1954 he had been third in the National League’s Rookie of the Year voting, beating out Hank Aaron. A year later he was an All-Star sensation, coming on in the 12th to mow down Al Kaline, Mickey Vernon and Al Rosen.
He was still with the Braves when they beat the Yankees in the storied 1957 World Series, and in 1959 he went 12-7 for the last-place Phillies, striking out Ted Williams in the All-Star game.
But in this town he will always be remembered for the way Red Auerbach deployed him to get inside Wilt Chamberlain’s head.
“Red knew exactly how and when to use us,” Conley recalled years later, laughing. “He’d have me so mad I was within seconds of wanting to pop him.
“One night we knew it was going to be an easy win, so I got taped, which I never did. Everybody’s playing, except me. With a minute to go Red yells, ‘Conley, get out there so Russell can get an ovation!’
“That was just too much. I’m furious, throwing tape around the locker room, when he comes over and asks if I’d like to go for some Chinese food. I told him what he could do with his Chinese food, then stormed out, slamming the door.
“But the next night we were playing the Warriors and I was still so mad I beat on Wilt all game long while Russell was clearing the boards. I didn’t have enough sense to realize Red was grooming me for the big one, getting me rested and infuriated.”
No, you won’t find him included among the legends lining the Garden’s rafters, but make no mistake: Gene Conley was the essence of Celtics lore.
Goodbye, good friend, and God bless.