Veteran forward Danilo Gallinari is a Boston Celtic after years of many of the team’s fans hoping for the Italian swingman to be brought onto their favorite team. Now, that wish has been granted, but Gallinari recently revealed that it nearly had happened more than one time in the past.

“We were close a couple of times since Brad took over as a head coach years ago,” the Italian forward said on a recent episode of the CLNS Media “A-List” podcast. “We’ve also been in touch,” continued Gallinari as he described a years-long flirtation with a ball club he and his father had been fans of for decades.