Lucious Brown Jackson (October 31, 1941 – October 12, 2022), also known as Luke Jackson, was an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player. A

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to centers. When on offense, they typically play with their ba ...

and

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

, he played for 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 ...

of the

National Basketball Association 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 S ...

(NBA) from 1964 to 1972. He was named an

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of al ...

in 1965, and won an

NBA championship 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 ...

with the 76ers in 1967. Jackson also played for the U.S. national team in the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this ho ...

Biography

Amateur career

Jackson was born on October 31, 1941, in

San Marcos, Texas San Marcos ( ) is a city and the county seat of Hays County, Texas, United States. The city's limits extend into Caldwell and Guadalupe Counties, as well. San Marcos is within the Austin–Round Rock metropolitan area and on the Interstate 35 ...

, and his family moved to

Bastrop, Louisiana Bastrop is a city in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana. It is the parish seat of Morehouse Parish. The population was 11,365 at the 2010 census, a decrease of 1,623 from the 12,988 tabulation of 2000. The population of Bastrop is 73 percent African A ...

, when he was in high school because San Marcos would not allow him to play for the all-white basketball team. He graduated from Morehouse High School in Bastrop. He attended Pan American College and played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the Pan American Broncs. In 1963,

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...

named Jackson an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n. He won the

Chuck Taylor Most Valuable Player Award The Chuck Taylor Most Valuable Player Award was created to honor the most outstanding player for the NAIA national men's basketball championship, NAIA Men's Division I National Championship Tournament. Established in 1939, it has been awarded every ...

in the

NAIA Men's Basketball Championships The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics men's basketball national championship has been held annually since 1937 (with the exception of 1944 and 2020). The tournament was established by James Naismith to crown a national champion for ...

in 1963 and 1964. Jackson played for the

United States men's national basketball team The USA Basketball Men's National Team, commonly known as the United States men's national basketball team, is the basketball team representing the United States. They are the most successful team in international competition, winning medals in ...

at the 1963 Pan American Games and the

1963 FIBA World Championship The 1963 FIBA World Championship was the 4th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. The competition was hosted by Brazil. The Philippines was originally supposed to host the tournament but FIBA ...

. He was a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball team that won the gold at the

in Tokyo.

Professional career

The 76ers selected Jackson in the first round, with the fourth overall pick, in the 1964 NBA draft. He played eight seasons (1964–1972) with the

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 ...

. A 6-foot, 9-inch (2.06 m)

who played

occasionally. He played in the 1965 NBA All-Star Game. After the season, he was named to the NBA's 1964–65 All-Rookie Team after averaging 14.8 points and 12.9 rebounds per game. A teammate of

Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman Chamberlain (; August 21, 1936 – October 12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player who played as a Center (basketball), center. Standing at tall, he played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 yea ...

, Jackson was a starter on the 1966–67 Philadelphia championship team that ended 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 ...

' string of eight straight NBA championships. He scored 13 points and had 21 rebounds in the title-clinching game over the San Francisco Warriors in the 1967 NBA Finals. After the 1968 season, the 76ers traded Chamberlain to the Lakers, and the 76ers moved Jackson back to center. Before the 1969–70 season, Jackson defected to the

Carolina Cougars The Carolina Cougars were a basketball franchise in the American Basketball Association that existed from 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Ca ...

of the rival

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major men's professional basketball league from 1967 to 1976. The ABA ceased to exist with the ABA–NBA merger, American Basketball Association–National Basketball Association merger in 1976, ...

. A few days later, he reneged on the agreement with Carolina, returning to the 76ers. He missed time during the season with an

achilles' heel An Achilles' heel (or Achilles heel) is a weakness in spite of overall strength, which can lead to downfall. While the mythological origin refers to a physical vulnerability, idiomatic references to other attributes or qualities that can lead to ...

injury and a collapsed lung. Jackson continued to experience chronic injuries to his left foot, including a tendon and a toe bone. He retired after the 1971–72 season.

Personal life and death

Jackson and his wife, Marva, were married for 57 years before his death. After his retirement from basketball, they settled in

Beaumont, Texas Beaumont is a coastal city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat, seat of government of Jefferson County, Texas, Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur, Texas, Port Arthur Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, metropo ...

, Marva's hometown, in 1973. He finished his degree at Pan American University and worked for the Beaumont Parks and Recreation Department starting in 1975. He retired in 2002. They had three children, all of whom played basketball at

West Brook High School West Brook Senior High School is a high school in the city of Beaumont, Texas. It is operated by the Beaumont Independent School District and was formed in 1982 as a court-ordered measure to integrate the schools of the formerly separate South Park ...

and collegiately. Nicole and Andrea played for the

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal School," ...

and Lucious III, played college basketball for

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

. The 1990s all-female rock band

Luscious Jackson Luscious Jackson is an alternative rock/ rap-rock group formed in 1991. The band's name is a reference to former American basketball player Lucious Jackson. The original band consisted of Jill Cunniff (vocals, bass), Gabby Glaser (vocals, guit ...

chose their name as inspiration from Lucious Jackson. Jackson died from heart failure in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas, on October 12, 2022, at the age of 80.

NBA career statistics

;Source

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Lucious 1941 births 2022 deaths 1963 FIBA World Championship players 20th-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players at the 1963 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 1964 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Texas Centers (basketball) Medalists at the 1963 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics National Basketball Association All-Stars Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in basketball Philadelphia 76ers draft picks Philadelphia 76ers players Power forwards (basketball) Sportspeople from San Marcos, Texas Texas–Pan American Broncs men's basketball players Texas Southern Tigers men's basketball players United States men's national basketball team players