When the Celtics faced off against the Pacers earlier this week, basketball took a backseat-at least for a moment. Before the game tipped off, Indiana head coach Rick Carlisle stepped to the mic and used his platform to spotlight something far more important than Xs and Os: the health battle of longtime Celtics trainer Ed Lacerte.
Lacerte, a familiar and respected figure in Boston sports circles, has been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of leukemia. He spent decades with the Celtics, dating back to the franchise’s glory years in the 1980s, and remained a steady presence through numerous eras of Celtics basketball. Now, the team-and the broader NBA community-is rallying around him.
“Ed Lacerte, legendary Celtics trainer, had just gotten the job here at the end of my stint with the Celtics as a player,” Carlisle said. “So I got to know him and have known him for years because of our relationship with the NBA Trainers Association.”
Carlisle, who played for Boston in the mid-1980s, didn’t just acknowledge Lacerte’s diagnosis-he made a call to action. “Many of you know he's fighting for his life,” he said.
“He has aggressive leukemia. And there's an effort right now to find a stem cell match.”
That effort is being driven by both the Celtics and the NBA Trainers Association. Players and coaches are wearing pins in support, and the Celtics have been donning shooting shirts to raise awareness. Later this season, the Pacers will join in, wearing warm-up shirts with “Lacerte” emblazoned on the back.
The ask is simple, but potentially lifesaving: people between the ages of 18 and 35 can register to become a potential donor with just a 20-second cheek swab. It can be done from home, and donating-if you're a match-is as straightforward as giving blood.
The challenge? Lacerte’s blood type is rare, making the search for a match even more urgent.
Carlisle didn’t mince words about the kind of person Lacerte is. “This is a great man,” he said.
“He was also the trainer for USA Basketball, I think on one or more occasions. He served his country.
He served this city, this organization. And it's a difficult struggle right now, so anything any of us can do to help bring awareness, we would like to do.”
For a league that often preaches family and community, this is one of those moments where the words are being backed by action. Lacerte may no longer be on the bench, but the NBA family is making sure he’s not fighting alone.