K. C. Jones (May 25, 1932 – December 25, 2020) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is best known for his association with the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

of the National Basketball Association (NBA), with whom he won 11 of his 12 NBA championships (eight as a player, one as an assistant coach, and two as a head coach). As a player, he is tied for third for most NBA championships in a career, and is one of three NBA players with an 8–0 record in NBA Finals series. He is the only African-American coach other than Bill Russell to have won multiple NBA championships. Jones was inducted into the

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...

in 1989.

Early life

Jones was born in Taylor, Texas, as the oldest of six children. The initials "K. C." were his given name; he inherited the same name as his father, a factory worker and cook, who himself was named after the fabled railroad engineer Casey Jones. When Jones was aged nine, his parents divorced and he moved to San Francisco, California, with his mother and two siblings. He learned to play basketball on a patch of gravel. Jones attended Commerce High School in San Francisco where he played basketball and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

Playing career

Jones played college basketball at the University of San Francisco and, along with Bill Russell, guided the Dons to NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956. During their time with the Dons, Russell and Jones led the team to a then-record 55-game win streak (including an undefeated 29–0 record during the 1955–56 season) and helped pioneer a play that later became known as the alley-oop. Jones also played with Russell on the United States national team which won the gold medal at the

1956 Olympic Games 1956 Olympics refers to both: *The 1956 Winter Olympics, which were held in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy *The 1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport even ...

in Melbourne, Australia, while defeating their opponents by an unsurpassed average margin of 53.5 points per game. After completing college and joining the NBA, Jones considered a career as an

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

player, even trying out for a team. However, he failed to make the cut. During his playing days, he was known as a tenacious defender. Jones spent all of his nine seasons in the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

with the

, being part of eight championship teams from 1959 to 1966, retiring after the Celtics' loss to the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...

in the 1967 Eastern Division Finals. He was inducted into the

in 1989. Jones is one of only eight players in basketball history to have won an NCAA championship, an NBA championship, and an Olympic gold medal, joining Bill Russell,

Magic Johnson Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player. He is often regarded as the greatest point guard of all-time and has been compared with Stephen Curry. Johnson played 13 seasons in the ...

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

, Jerry Lucas, Clyde Lovellette,

Quinn Buckner William Quinn Buckner (born August 20, 1954) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played collegiate basketball for the Indiana University Hoosiers, and won a national championship in 1976. He was a captain of both ...

, and

Anthony Davis Anthony Marshon Davis Jr. (born March 11, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He plays the power forward and center positions. Davis is an eight-time NB ...

. In NBA history, only his former teammates Russell (11 championships) and Sam Jones (10) have won more championships during their playing careers.

Coaching career

Jones began his coaching career at Brandeis University, serving as its head coach from 1967 to 1970. He served as an assistant coach at Harvard University from 1970 to 1971. Jones then reunited with former teammate

Bill Sharman William Walton Sharman (May 25, 1926 – October 25, 2013) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He is mostly known for his time with the Boston Celtics in the 1950s, partnering with Bob Cousy in what was then considered ...

as the assistant coach for the 1971–72 NBA champion

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

. During that season, the team won a record 33 straight games. He became the first-ever head coach of the

ABA ABA may refer to: Businesses and organizations Broadcasting * Alabama Broadcasters Association, United States * Asahi Broadcasting Aomori, Japanese television station * Australian Broadcasting Authority Education * Académie des Beaux- ...

San Diego Conquistadors The San Diego Conquistadors (known as the San Diego Sails in their final, partial season), were an American Basketball Association (ABA) team based in San Diego. The "Q's", as they were popularly known, played from 1972 to 1975. As the Sails, the ...

on August 8, 1972. One week after Jones' only season with the Conquistadors ended with his resignation, he signed a three‐year contract to succeed Gene Shue in a similar capacity with the Capital Bullets (name changed to Washington Bullets beginning in 1974–75) on June 18, 1973. During his three years in Washington, the Bullets had a 155–91 win‐loss record and arguably the most talented team in the league. Being swept by the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

in the

1975 NBA Finals The 1975 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the 1974–75 NBA season of the National Basketball Association. The Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors (48–34) played against the Eastern Conference champio ...

and a seven-game loss to the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

in the Eastern Conference Semifinals the following year resulted in Jones' contract not being renewed on May 7, 1976. He was replaced by

Dick Motta John Richard Motta (born September 3, 1931) is an American former basketball coach whose career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) spanned 25 years. Motta coached the Washington Bullets to the 1978 NBA Championship, and he won the 1971 ...

three weeks later on May 28, 1976. In 1983, Jones took over as head coach of the Boston Celtics, replacing Bill Fitch. Jones guided the Larry Bird-led Celtics to championships in 1984 and 1986. Also in 1986, Jones led the Eastern squad in the

1986 NBA All-Star Game The 36th National Basketball Association All-Star Game was played on February 9, 1986, at Reunion Arena in Dallas. The coaches were K.C. Jones for the East, and Pat Riley for the West. The most valuable player was Isiah Thomas of the Detroit Pisto ...

in Dallas at the Reunion Arena, beating the Western squad 139–132. The Celtics won the Atlantic Division in all five of Jones's seasons as head coach and reached the NBA Finals in four of his five years as coach. In a surprise announcement, he retired after the 1987–88 season and was succeeded by assistant coach Jimmy Rodgers. Jones spent one season in the Celtics' front office in 1988–89, then resigned to join the Seattle SuperSonics as an assistant coach and basketball consultant for the 1989–90 season. He served as head coach of the Sonics in 1990–91 and 1991–92. In 1994, Jones joined the Detroit Pistons as an assistant coach for one season. The Pistons' head coach at that time, Don Chaney, had previously played for Jones with the Celtics. Jones was also considered to once again coach the Celtics during the off-season in 1995. In 1996, Jones returned to the Boston Celtics, this time as an assistant coach for one season. Jones returned to the professional coaching ranks in 1997, guiding the

New England Blizzard The New England Blizzard was a women's professional basketball franchise based in Hartford, Connecticut. The Blizzard was a charter member of the American Basketball League (1996–98), American Basketball League (ABL). Playing from 1996 through 1 ...

of the fledgling women's American Basketball League (1996–1998) through its last seasons of existence. The Blizzard made the playoffs in his second year as head coach, but they were summarily dispatched by the

San Jose Lasers The San Jose Lasers were a women's professional basketball team in San Jose, California. It was a member of the American Basketball League. Their home games were primarily held at the San Jose State Event Center with an occasional game being p ...

Personal life

Jones married Beverly Cain – the sister of his Olympic teammate

Carl Cain Carl Cecil Cain (born August 2, 1934) is an American retired basketball player who competed in the 1956 Summer Olympics. Born in Freeport, Illinois, Cain played college basketball for the Iowa Hawkeyes. His number is retired by the University ...

– in 1959; they had five children together before they divorced. He had a sixth child when he remarried to Ellen. His son, Kipper, played as a guard at

Bentley College Bentley University is a private university focused on business, accountancy, and finance and located in Waltham, Massachusetts. Founded in 1917 as a school of accounting and finance in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood, Bentley moved to Waltham in ...

. His daughter, Bryna, received a basketball and volleyball scholarship to attend the University of Hawaii.

Death

Jones died on December 25, 2020, at an assisted living center in Connecticut, aged 88. He had

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

NBA career statistics

Source:

Regular season

Playoffs

Head coaching record

Source: , - , style="text-align:left;", San Diego , style="text-align:left;", 1972–73 , 84, , 30, , 54, , .357, , style="text-align:center;", 4th in Western, , 4, , 0, , 4, , .000 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in

Division Semifinals Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

, - , style="text-align:left;",

Capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

, style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 47, , 35, , .573, , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Central, , 7, , 3, , 4, , .429 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in Conference Semifinals , - , style="text-align:left;", Washington , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 60, , 22, , .732, , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Central, , 17, , 8, , 9, , .471 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

, - , style="text-align:left;", Washington , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 48, , 34, , .585, , style="text-align:center;", 2nd in Central, , 7, , 3, , 4, , .429 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in Conference Semifinals , - ! style="background:#FDE910;" , style="text-align:left;", Boston , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 62, , 20, , .756, , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Atlantic, , 23, , 15, , 8, , .652 , style="text-align:center;", Won NBA Championship , - , style="text-align:left;", Boston , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 63, , 19, , .768, , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Atlantic, , 21, , 13, , 8, , .619 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in

, - ! style="background:#FDE910;" , style="text-align:left;", Boston , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 67, , 15, , .817, , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Atlantic, , 18, , 15, , 3, , .833 , style="text-align:center;", Won NBA Championship , - , style="text-align:left;", Boston , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 59, , 23, , .720, , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Atlantic, , 23, , 13, , 10, , .565 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in

, - , style="text-align:left;", Boston , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 57, , 25, , .695, , style="text-align:center;", 1st in Atlantic, , 17, , 9, , 8, , .529 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in

Conference Finals Conference Finals may refer to: * NBA Conference Finals, National Basketball Association * NHL Conference Finals, National Hockey League * KHL Conference Finals The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) Conference Finals are the Eastern Conference and Wes ...

, - , style="text-align:left;", Seattle , style="text-align:left;", , 82, , 41, , 41, , .500, , style="text-align:center;", 5th in Pacific, , 5, , 2, , 3, , .400 , style="text-align:center;", Lost in

First Round First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

, - , style="text-align:left;", Seattle , style="text-align:left;", , 36, , 18, , 18, , .500, , style="text-align:center;", (fired), , —, , —, , —, , — , style="text-align:center;", — , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:left;", NBA career , , , 774, , 522, , 252, , .674, , , , 138, , 81, , 57, , .587 , style="text-align:center;", — , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:left;", ABA career , , , 80, , 30, , 54, , .357, , , , 4, , 0, , 4, , .000 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:left;", Total career , , , 858, , 552, , 306, , .643, , , , 142, , 81, , 61, , .570

Awards and honors

*Two-time NCAA Champion *1956 Olympic Gold Medal winner *12-time NBA Champion (eight as a player, two as a head coach, two as an assistant coach) *"Triple Crown" (NCAA, NBA, Olympic champion) winner *Five-time NBA All-Star Game head coach *

(class of 1989) * College Basketball Hall of Fame (class of 2006) *

U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame The United States Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame is an honor roll of the top American Olympic and Paralympic athletes headquartered at the United States Olympic & Paralympic Museum, opened in April 2020 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The Hall ...

(class of 1986 – as a member of the 1956 U.S. men's basketball team) *2016 Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award

References

External links

*
NBA.com profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, K. C. 1932 births 2020 deaths African-American basketball players African-American basketball coaches All-American college men's basketball players Amateur Athletic Union men's basketball players American Basketball League (1996–1998) coaches American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Texas Basketball players at the 1956 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Texas Boston Celtics assistant coaches Boston Celtics draft picks Boston Celtics head coaches Boston Celtics players Brandeis Judges men's basketball coaches Capital Bullets head coaches College men's basketball head coaches in the United States Detroit Pistons assistant coaches Harvard Crimson men's basketball coaches Los Angeles Lakers assistant coaches Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics Milwaukee Bucks assistant coaches Minneapolis Lakers draft picks Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees National Basketball Association championship-winning head coaches National Basketball Association players with retired numbers Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball People from Taylor, Texas Point guards San Diego Conquistadors coaches San Francisco Dons men's basketball players Seattle SuperSonics assistant coaches Seattle SuperSonics head coaches United States men's national basketball team players Washington Bullets head coaches New England Blizzard 21st-century African-American people