Catching Up with Dave Cowens

 Cincinnati.Com

By Tom Groeschen

They still present the "Dave Cowens Mr. Hustle
Award" annually in Northern Kentucky high
school basketball. Nearly three decades after his
Hall of Fame playing career ended, Newport
native Cowens maintains a brisk pace.

Cowens was known for his hustling, bruising
style of play, and he helped lead the Boston
Celtics to NBA titles in 1974 and '76. Cowens
also enjoyed success as an NBA head coach,
most notably with Charlotte from 1996-99.

Cowens, who turned 62 in October, now lives in
Maine and does some corporate work for the
Celtics. He also is starting to do some TV work
for Comcast. Cowens also is involved with the
Sports Museum of New England, the National
Basketball Retired Players Association, and his
Dave Cowens Basketball School in Norton, Mass.

Cowens was inducted into the Naismith
Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991.
Cowens was selected as one of the NBA's 50
greatest players in 1996, when the league
celebrated its 50th anniversary.

Cowens traces his work ethic to his days at St.
Anthony elementary school in Bellevue, Ky., and
then Newport Catholic High School (now Newport
Central Catholic).

"It was just about having fun back then, being a
kid and having a lot of energy," Cowens said in a
recent telephone interview. "It was about playing
on a team and trying to get better."

Left-hander Cowens was a raw talent in high
school. He was not much of a scorer then, but
was a tenacious rebounder.

Cowens blossomed further at Florida State
University. Cowens was an undersized pivotman
at 6-foot-9 and 230 pounds, but made up for it
by blocking shots, diving for loose balls, leading
fastbreaks and putting a body on bigger centers.

"He scared me the first time I saw him," Celtics
president Red Auerbach later said. "He was so
good that I kept hoping he'd make a mistake."

As the 1970 NBA draft approached, Auerbach
prayed Cowens would last until Boston drafted at
No. 4 overall. The Celtics did land Cowens.

Having developed a feathery touch on his jump
shot, Cowens was lethal as both scorer and
rebounder. He was NBA MVP in 1973, and
finished his career with a 17.6 scoring average
and 13.6 rebounding average.

Cowens played the bulk of his career with
Boston, and finished with Milwaukee in 1983.

"I always wanted to go all-out all the time, on
both ends of the floor," Cowens said.

Cowens has been married for 32 years and has
two daughters. Cowens remains a favorite of
autograph seekers when he attends Celtics
games, where his retired No. 18 hangs in the
rafters. Back home in Newport, Dave Cowens
Drive spans the riverfront.
 

"I'm not really a celebrity any more," Cowens
said. "If somebody still recognizes me, that's
fine. These days, I just try to be as normal a
person as I can."