The Boston Celtics always will hold a special place in Luigi Datome’s heart.
Datome played a mere 24 games for the Celtics this past season before leaving the team as a free agent, but that was more than enough for the 27-year-old Italian to develop the type of cult-hero status not seen on Causeway Street since the days of Greg Stiemsma.
Shortly after signing a three-year contract Tuesday with Turkish club Fenerbahce, Datome told The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach he’ll continue to support the Celtics from his new European home.
[tweet https://twitter.com/AdamHimmelsbach/status/621039121256030209 align=’center’]
Datome also posted a message on his Facebook page thanking the NBA teams that offered him contracts this offseason and explaining why he ultimately decided to take his talents back overseas.
Celtics assistant coach Micah Shrewsberry, who currently is coaching Boston’s summer league outfit in Las Vegas, was highly complimentary of Datome when speaking with reporters Tuesday.
“Gigi was unbelievable, the highest of high-character guys that we had here,” Shrewsberry said, via MassLive.com. “You really didn’t know what you were getting when he came to us because he didn’t play a whole lot in Detroit. He came here, and there were times when we said, ‘Hey, let’s throw him in and see what we’ve got.’ But he worked every single day.
“We talk about some of the pros that we’ve had, guys like Brandon Bass. Gigi goes right along the (lines)Â with those guys. You never heard a peep out of him about not playing. He always wanted the opportunity, but he never said anything about not playing. But then we he did, he kind of maximized his potential.
“And I think that’s why the fans loved him so much — besides his hair and his beard.”
Ciao, Gigi. We hardly knew ye.
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
