The NBA mourns this Friday, Christmas Day, when the death is confirmed at 88 years legendary KC Jones, player and coach of the Boston Celtics.
The information was confirmed by the Celtics, a team he played with for nine seasons in the NBA, and won titles in eight of them, the third most in the league’s history, behind only legendary teammates Bill Russell (11) and Sam Jones (10).
That success carried over to his coaching days, when he won three titles (one as an assistant and two as a coach) on Boston’s hit series in the 1980s with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish, billed as the best in NBA history.
While always in the background as a player and coach, Jones, who was affectionately referred to as “C” as a symbol of champion, nor his stats were striking, he barely averaged 7.4 points in his career. as a point guard on the field was always central, especially in the defensive part.
Jones was the consummate team player whose defense has always caused serious problems for rival stars like Jerry West and Oscar Robertson, and whose game form powered the Celtics.
“I didn’t see how a man who shot as badly at the basket as KC could stay in the NBA,” recalls the legendary Bob Cousy, the famous Celtics point guard who initially approved of Jones and then replaced as starter when “Cooz” with retired. in 1963.
Cousy said that they were all wrong about Jones when it came to judging the qualities he had, that he turned out to be incredible in defense, and that he eventually learned how to score enough that opponents would like it. couldn’t afford not to score him.
Jones was on the title-winning teams with the Celtics from 1959 to 1966, an eight-year streak unparalleled in professional sports.
The only season in which he didn’t win a championship was 1966-67, and Jones retired shortly after, at 34.
But Jones remained in the league, first as a coach at Brandeis University outside Boston and then as an assistant or head coach in the NBA or ABA before returning to the Celtics as an assistant to the legendary Bill Fitch in 1977.
Fitch left the team for four years. later, and Jones replaced him, inherited a group led by Bird and fellow Hall of Famers McHale and Parish.
Three weeks after Jones took the helm, the Celtics made a move to take over point guard Dennis Johnson, who would be key in the Boston team’s revival.
Together, they reached the NBA Finals for four consecutive seasons (1984-87) and won titles in 1984 and 1986. Jones’ relaxed style of training was criticized by some, but welcomed by his players, especially the NBA’s great leader. team, the legendary Bird, who always showed him great respect as a professional and as a person.
Jones retired from coaching the Celtics after the 1987 season and moved to Celtics headquarters before ending his coaching career with the Seattle SuperSonics and Detroit Pistons.
The Celtics decided to withdraw his number 25 and he was also inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, in the class of 1989.
Born in Texas, Jones trained with Russell at the University of San Francisco and won consecutive NCAA titles in 1955 and 1956.
The summer after the second title, the two led the United States national team to a gold medal at the Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.
Jones is also just one of seven players to have won college and NBA basketball titles and Olympic gold, alongside Russell, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Jerry Lucas, Quinn Buckner and Clyde Lovellette.