You can't talk about the great Boston Celtics teams of the 1980s without mentioning Kevin McHale.
The C's selected the University of Minnesota star with the No. 3 pick in the 1980 NBA Draft, and he quickly became an important player for a championship team as a rookie.
He won Sixth Man of the Year twice before eventually moving into the starting lineup and transforming into one of the league's top players, earning seven All-Star selections, one first team All-NBA selection, three All-Defensive first team selections and three All-Defensive second team selections.
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McHale's peak came during the 1986-87 season in which he averaged 26.1 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game, while shooting a league-leading 60.4 percent from the field. He finished fourth in MVP voting that season.
After putting together a Hall of Fame career highlighted by three NBA titles in Boston, the Celtics retired McHale's No. 32 to the rafters at the old Boston Garden on Jan. 30, 1994.
He received a standing ovation that lasted two-and-a-half minutes before the halftime ceremony commenced.
"He personifies everything we dream about being a Celtic player," Celtics legend Red Auerbach said of McHale just before the banner was raised.
Learn more about McHale's career in the "Defining Moments" video above, presented by VA New England.
