Reggie Lewis: 11/21/65 - 7/27/93

Twelve years ago, on the night of July 27, 1993, Reggie Lewis passed away. Reggie was last Celtic when it meant something to be a Celtic. He was a Celtic when you were expected to win every game, and he carried himself in the same manner.

I met Reggie one month before he died, when I was at the Cambridge Side Galleria with my parents. Somehow or other my parents won this contest to get an autographed jersey from Reggie, but I was nowhere to be found. Reggie refused to leave until my parents found me so I could meet him and get his autograph. I was 11 years old, and that jersey, albeit with the signature well-faded, still hangs on my wall. A month later, he was gone.

It's hard not to think about how his career would have turned out. There's no point, though, really. Reggie Lewis was a great basketball player and a great man. A true Celtic.