Wow. His 1957 MVP award is for sale, too. That's so sad that players of that era have jackshit to show for their time playing while absolutely crappy 11th men get hundreds of thousands of dollars to pick splinters out of their asses.
I don't remember hearing anything about him being in debt. Is it possible his kids are all assholes (a la John Henry) and he just doesn't feel like leaving it to them?
(Of course, he could donate them to the Hall of Fame instead of selling them, if that were true. I was just speculating...)
“To get ass, you’ve got to bring ass." -- Roy Jones Jr.
"Your input has been noted. I hope you don't take it personally if I disregard it." -- Guru Zim
Originally posted by JayJayDeanI don't remember hearing anything about him being in debt. Is it possible his kids are all assholes (a la John Henry) and he just doesn't feel like leaving it to them?
(Of course, he could donate them to the Hall of Fame instead of selling them, if that were true. I was just speculating...)
Actually, its more the other way and Cousy and his wife want to sell the stuff now so they can have the money to leave it to their kids and grandkids while they are still alive. Cousy looked healthy when he broadcast the Celtics opener, so its not like he's doing it to beat death's door.
Why Pro Wrestling proves the INS cannot keep terrorists out of the United States: If a felon like Nathan Jones is allowed into the United States with no special skills (unless being totally inept in the ring counts, but I think there are enough totally inept people in the US to keep that skill from being unique or special), then how the hell can they justify keeping anyone else out?
Boston Celtics legends Bob Cousy, Bill Russell and Arnold "Red'' Auerbach greet each other in Boston on Feb. 7, 2001, before a panel discussion about race relations in sports. The event coincided with the 50th anniversary of the Celtics' drafting Chuck Cooper, the first black player drafted into the NBA. (AP FILE PHOTOS) Enlarge photo
WORCESTER- Would you like to own Bob Cousy's 1957 NBA Most Valuable Player Trophy? How about his 1957 NBA Championship ring? Or his 1952 NBA All-Star uniform, the 1947 NCAA championship watch he won with Holy Cross or his Basketball Hall of Fame ring?
Cousy placed those items and all of his basketball memorabilia up for auction via telephone and the Internet yesterday. SportsCards Plus of California is conducting the auction through Nov. 20.
Cousy's memorabilia from his Holy Cross and Boston Celtics careers filled a room in his basement at his home in Worcester, but he decided to sell it and split the proceeds between his two schoolteacher daughters, Marie and Ticia.
Cousy turned down previous offers from auctioneers and figured his daughters could decide if they wanted to sell his stuff after he was gone, but he decided they could use the money now. Marie's daughter, Nicole, just began her freshman year at the University of Santa Clara in California, and her son, Zachary, will enter college in two years.
"Our game plan was to let the girls do it, but we're just hanging around too long," Cousy, 75, said, referring to him and his wife, Missy. "They could be close to 70 before they see any inheritance."
Few have accomplished what Cousy did in basketball. He was a freshman on HC's 1947 NCAA championship, then refined the point guard position in the NBA. He helped the Celtics win six NBA championships. He made first-team All-NBA 10 consecutive years, then made the second team twice. But Cousy retired 40 years ago, long before bench-warmers became millionaires. His top salary was $35,000 in his final season. Cousy enjoyed greater financial success after his playing days.
Cousy, a senior on the 1949-50 Holy Cross team, led the Crusaders to 26 straight victories that season and a second-place finish in the National Invitation Tournament, which at that time decided the national collegiate champion. Cousy is placing all of his basketball memorabilia up for auction. Enlarge photo
"If it wasn't for our daughters, I never would have thought of doing something like this," Cousy said. "Thank goodness, we don't need it."
Cousy's former Celtics teammate Bill Sharman, who auctioned off his memorabilia, urged Cousy to go with SportsCards Plus, which has auctioned Honus Wagner and Wilt Chamberlain memorabilia.
"We do it very classy. Basically, he's just estate planning," said SportsCards Plus President David Kohler. "He's saying, "Let's share the collection with all the Celtics and Bob Cousy fans across America,' and the monies are going to go to his family rather than them dealing with it later. That's become accepted in the market. Bob's not the first one to do this."
The Cousy catalog contains 155 lots with up to 10 items in each lot. Kohler expects the auction to raise "nice six-figures, easily." The minimum bid for Cousy's 1996 lithograph of the NBA's 50 greatest players, signed by the 49 who were living at the time, is listed at $15,000 and Kohler estimates it could sell for between $40,000 and $60,000. Kohler, who owns the world's largest Lakers collection, described Cousy's 1957 MVP trophy as the finest basketball trophy he's ever seen. The trophy's minimum bid is listed at $10,000.
"This is the biggest basketball collection for a player to ever come to the market, by far," Kohler said.
Other items include Cousy's baby picture, his high-school scrapbook, his 1947 NCAA championship plaque, his 1950 Holy Cross senior year yearbook, his 5,000th career assist game ball, and a framed photograph of the 1963 Celtics with President John F. Kennedy, autographed by Kennedy to Cousy. There's even a Worcester IceCats jersey presented to him by the team with his name and No. 1 on it.
All of the memorabilia was packed in boxes and shipped to California months ago. To view the auction items, log on to www.sportscardsplus.com. Call SportsCards Plus at (800) 350-2273 to phone in a bid or register for the Internet bidding.
Years ago, thieves broke into Cousy's home and stole such items as his Holy Cross graduation ring as well as a sterling silver tray set that former Celtics owner Walter Brown gave him. Missy convinced Cousy to keep a few things, including his framed piece of the Boston Garden parquet floor. His Holy Cross diploma is locked away in a safe deposit box. But Cousy had little trouble parting with just about everything else.
"I'm not a yesterday person at all," Cousy said. "It's today and tomorrow that I worry about."
He did acknowledge, however, that he and Missy shed a few tears last week while thumbing through his auction catalog.
For most of his life, the memorabilia phenomenon didn't interest Cousy.
"You've got to be extremely careful," he said. "There's people out there signing my autograph better than I do."
A few years ago, a mall in Orlando, Florida, sold Bob Cousy basketballs that he hadn't authorized. Dealers told Cousy that he'd do his fans a favor by allowing them to watch him autograph balls or photos rather than risk purchasing counterfeit items.
"It was a legitimate argument," Cousy decided.
He finally worked his first card show in Atlantic City, N.J., last spring when Cousy acknowledged a dealer reached his "choking price." He flew down with former Celtics great Dave Cowens and signed for 5˝ consecutive hours.
Now Cousy fans can get much more than his autograph.
One of the guys from Sportstalk 980 suggested that the PResident of the NBA Players Association buy the stuff from Cousym and give it back to him, and let him keep the money. Cousy did help start the NBA's players union, which now makes more money than any other union in the world. Now sports reporters want the union to return the favor.
Originally posted by MalfunkshonOne of the guys from Sportstalk 980 suggested that the PResident of the NBA Players Association buy the stuff from Cousym and give it back to him, and let him keep the money. Cousy did help start the NBA's players union, which now makes more money than any other union in the world. Now sports reporters want the union to return the favor.
That would have been Mike Greenberg of Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN Radio.
Let me the only person in the universe to (partially) defend Marcus Camby. They have a Collective Bargining agreement, and an enviorment where if one side always gets something back when it gives something up.