Today in Boston Celtics history: Magic 51-game streak snapped; Pinkney debut, Theis born
Today in Boston Celtics history, in 1996, the team ended the Orlando Magic's 51-game home winning streak, which was an NBA record at that time. The Celtics did it in a 100-98 victory on the road. The Magic had not gone through a home loss to any opponent at that time since April 1994.
Point guard David Wesley led Boston with 22 points and 7 rebounds, while forward Rick Fox put up another 16 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists. On top of that, reserve guard Dee Brown added another 15 points and 6 assists from the bench, and center Pervis Ellison contributed 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 blocks to secure the win. "Certainly, we're not the same team with Penny (Hardaway) and Shaq both off the floor, but we're still good enough to win this game this evening," said Magic head coach Brian Hill after the loss ( via the New York Times' Clifton Brown ).
"We had a double-digit lead in the second half. " "We still should have won," he added. Birthdays Today is also the birthday of Celtics center Daniel Theis, born this day in 1992 in Salzgitter, Germany.
Theis played overseas in several European leagues -- winning two German League titles while there -- before joining Boston in 2017. He would play with the Celtics until the 2021 NBA trade deadline, which saw him dealt to the Chicago Bulls. The German big man played there and for the Houston Rockets before being traded from the latter back to Boston at the 2022 deadline.
He averaged 7. 2 points, 4. 8 assists, and 1.