Shit.
To echo what everyone else has said above, nobody loved the Celtics more. Who else in professional sports could claim to have had some sort of a visible role in almost the entire existence of a pro sports league, one that dates back to post-WWII? After the shock-clock was introduced, whether it was as a player, coach or broadcaster, Tommy was there. Passion, humor, charisma and authenticity would how I would define Tommy. Who else could be a Hall of Fame player that won 8(!) championships, and then a Hall of Fame Coach that won two more titles, and yet on the day he died, everyone talks about him as a broadcaster. Hell, he was also the president of the Player's Union and a key figure in the early days of that organization helping pave the way to the luxuries players enjoy today.
Due to his post-playing career, people don't talk about how good of a player he was. The game has changed and his stats don't jump off the page, but he was the leading scorer on 3 Championship teams; only Mikan, Havlicek, Kareem, Bird, Jordan, Shaq, Duncan and LeBron can claim that. Everyone talks about rookie Magic Johnson's famous triple double to clinch the 1980 title for the Lakers; but what about rookie Tommy Heinsohn, going for 37&23 in Game 7 to beat the Hawks for the Celtics first title? His personality and humor was a necessary cog on a team full of stern professionals; Red rode him hard in practice and questioned his conditioning, and the Boston press mocked him by calling him Tommy Gun due to his selfish shot selection. Perhaps nobody in history was better equipped to play the role of jester, taking the heat from the media and coaches and shielding his more sensitive teammates.
In a game a few years ago against the heat, IT got red hot and hit a crazy dagger three against Miami. I said at the time that my goal in life is to live as long as Tommy and still having something make me as happy as he was when IT cashed that shot.:
View: https://youtu.be/W4K7nKW6sDg?t=222