On Friday night, former Celtic great Dennis Johnson was posthumously inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the 2010 Class. His widow, Donna Johnson, and his brother, Gary, accepted the honor on his behalf.
A video montage was shown at the start of Johnson's presentation, during which Hall of Famers and former Celtics Larry Bird, John Havlicek and Bill Walton spoke. Bird said Johnson was "the best player I've ever played with" during the montage. [...]
Donna cried during a morning press conference at the Hall of Fame as she tried to offer thanks for her husband's long-awaited induction.
It was a long-time coming for "DJ," the point guard for the Celtics in the 1980s, and one of the game's greatest defenders.
"Everybody's been telling me it's long overdue, which, yeah, I think it has been, too," Donna said later. "But I'm really happy this moment has come. It's just too bad he couldn't enjoy it. It's been an emotional roller coaster."
Larry Bird added that it was "disappointing" that it took so long for Johnson to be recognized, "but, still, he's there. I'm so proud of the family. I'm so happy for them. This meant a lot to DJ. We talked about this when he was playing."