The 1946–47 Boston Celtics season was the first season of the Boston Celtics in the Basketball Association of America (BAA/NBA). Walter A. Brown was the man who was responsible for starting the franchise. In June 1946, Brown, who operated the Boston Garden arena and was part of the National Hockey League's Boston Bruins, was the driving force behind the Basketball Association of America and the Celtics birth. After considering several team names, including Whirlwinds, Unicorns, and Olympics, Brown opted for Celtics. He hoped to grab the attention of Boston's large Irish American population. John Davis "Honey" Russell was hired as the first Celtics coach, and the team soon began its inaugural season, losing its first game 59–53 to the Providence Steamrollers. The Celtics won their first game of the season against the Toronto Huskies on November 16, 1946.

Roster

Regular season

On November 5, the Celtics played their first game at the Boston Arena in front of 4,329 fans. The game would be delayed for an hour when the wooden backboard was damaged after a practice dunk during warm-ups. After the backboard was repaired, the Celtics lost to the Chicago Stags by a score 57–55. This would become the first-ever broken backboard in BAA/NBA History.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

Player stats

Season

Transactions

Trades

Purchases