The play has been shown and talked about so often in the past 50 years that it’s almost as much a part of Celtics history as the team’s green uniforms or the Garden’s parquet floor.
But if you talk to John Havlicek, the man who infamously stole the ball in Game 7 of the 1965 Eastern Conference finals, sealing a win and sending the Celtics to another NBA Finals, the play wouldn’t have earned nearly as much attention if it weren’t for someone else — a man who wasn’t even on the court or wearing a uniform.
It was Johnny Most, the legendary Celtics play-by-play radio voice, who, no pun intended, stole the play, belting out the iconic words — “Havlicek stole the ball!