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The Celtics received a hoax bomb threat while flying from Boston to Oklahoma City

Kelly Dwyer
Coach Brad Stevens knew of the threat, but his players did not. (Getty Images)
Coach Brad Stevens knew of the threat, but his players did not. (Getty Images)

By the time the Boston Celtics landed in Oklahoma City on Saturday evening, fears surrounding the city’s infamous haunted hotel probably felt like child’s play in comparison to what the C’s had to stare down. Some of the C’s, at least.

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Boston coach Brad Stevens and “about four others,” according to team broadcaster Brian Scalabrine were the only members of the franchise’s touring crew to be informed that someone had called in a bomb threat for the team’s flight to OKC. The flight, obvious to those who watched the Celtics compete against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday evening, clearly landed safely and without incident.

Not before, however, the team was delayed on the tarmac as the appropriate amount of emergency responders and, according to Scalabrine, something like three-dozen FBI employees made sure everything was on the up and up.

Here is Scalabrine’s recount from Monday morning in a talk on XM’s NBA channel, pointing out the fact that only Celtics coach Brad Stevens knew of the threat when the plane was still in-air:

Via Snapchat …

… and then Twitter …

… Celtics strongman Jae Crowder let his followers know that something was amiss upon touchdown.

According to multiple reports, there was no evidence of any foul play afoot upon the plane’s arrival in Oklahoma City’s Will Rogers Airport, and the entire incident is being regarded as a hoax, while team spokesman Jeff Twiss gave the media an “all is fine” declaration.

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Not before the coach of an NBA team had to fly around with his unaware players, fellow coaches, team personnel, medical staff and team broadcast crews (including The Vertical’s Brian Scalabrine) with the working knowledge that a bomb threat had been called in.

From CSN New England:

“Only a few of us knew with about an hour or so left in the flight,” Stevens told reporters in Oklahoma City. “Once we landed, we were greeted by a throng of police trucks and fire trucks. We were on the tarmac for a while.”

[…]

“Certainly, it’s not a very comfortable situation when you are in the middle of the air,” Stevens said. “It’s sick that somebody would make that call. Everyone that we interacted with, from the people on the plane, to the people once we landed, were terrific.”

From Chris Forsberg at ESPN:

“I mean, it wasn’t enjoyable,” Stevens said. “Only a few of us knew about an hour left in the flight or so and I thought the staff on board was great at being reassuring about all the checks they had made prior to leaving. And swiftly looking, without drawing much attention to themselves, while we were in the air. Once we landed, we were greeted by a throng of police officers and fire trucks, and were on the tarmac for a while, then went to the fire station there and everybody was great.

“It was a unique experience because everybody’s getting interviewed and everything else. Obviously, a lot of great people do their jobs well and reassure you that everything is going to be OK.”

The coach relayed that he was “reassured that they felt good about their pre-checks and they had gone through everything and everything else,” and that there was no need for undue worry. Save for the whole part about the specific bomb threat.

Stevens, speaking to the press prior to his team’s loss on Sunday, revealed that he understandably “didn’t know what the right answer” would be when informed of the threat, prior to taking the cockpit crew’s advice and leaving his team in the dark about the incident until the plane safely touched down.

Al Horford, one of the Celtics that flew without concern, had the appropriate reaction:

“It was just really weird. Very unexpected,” said Celtics big man Al Horford. “I’m glad that [it] was a false alarm.”

Avery Bradley shared the same sentiments:

“It was crazy,” said Avery Bradley before last night’s game against the Thunder. “I’m just happy we made it safe.

“I’m pretty sure everybody this morning when they woke up, they felt like, ‘Dang, I was part of a bomb threat.’ But when it happened, it was kind of like . . . it seemed fake. But this morning looking back at it, I was thinking that that could have been my last flight. But I’m here, we’re safe. I feel sad for people that do get those bomb threats and it actually follows through. I just feel blessed. I’m happy all my teammates and all our staff are safe.”

Outside of a near-tragedy averted during a Minneapolis Lakers flight in 1960, NBA teams have by and large safely made their way through the friendly skies.

We’ve no doubt that the (probably) unending series of threats made to NBA teams, either real or perceived, hardly counts as a “separating the wheat from the chaff”-situation due to the fanatical exercise that too-often comes part in parcel with being a fan of big time sports. This Boston Celtics incident is likely just one leaked story among dozens per year that see the NBA, its security handlers and all manner of other much-needed personnel dousing water on a frightening flame.

For that, we thank these people and are thankful that the Celtics made their way toward Oklahoma City via a safe trip.

A trip that gave this team yet another reason to think wonders of coach Brad Stevens’ steely poker face.

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Kelly Dwyer is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at KDonhoops@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!