Ozell "Hoppy" Jones III (November 20, 1960 – September 7, 2006) was an American professional basketball player. He was listed at and weighed . Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, his family soon moved to Compton, California, and later to

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

, so that he could play high school basketball at Long Beach Polytechnic. Jones first played college basketball with the

Wichita State University Wichita State University (WSU) is a public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 areas of study in ...

(1979–1981) and helped the "Shockers" reach the Elite 8 in his second year. He later transferred to

Cal State Fullerton California State University, Fullerton (CSUF or Cal State Fullerton) is a public university in Fullerton, California. With a total enrollment of more than 41,000, it has the largest student body of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) ...

to play for the "Titans" in 1982-1984. He entered the 1984 NBA Draft and was chosen in the fourth round (90th pick overall) by the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

. On 24 October 1985, he was waived by the Spurs. He later signed as a free agent with the

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

on March 31, 1986, but played in only three games. After his time in the NBA, he played overseas in Italy (1986–1987) then spent the rest of his professional career playing in the CBA for the

Cincinnati Slammers The Cincinnati Slammers, originally the Ohio Mixers, were a professional basketball team based in Lima, Ohio from 1982 to 1984 and Cincinnati, Ohio from 1984 to 1987. They were members of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA). The team was ...

(1986–1987),

Quad City Thunder The Quad City Thunder was a Continental Basketball Association franchise that was based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. They played in the CBA from the 1987–88 season until the CBA folded in 2001. The Thunder were successful on the c ...

(1987–1988),

Tulsa Fast Breakers The Savannah Spirits were a professional basketball team that played for two years in the Continental Basketball Association from 1986 to 1988, amassing a total regular season record of 42 wins and 60 losses for a total of 306.5 points. The team ...

(1989–1990),

Tri-City Chinook The Tri-City Chinook were a professional basketball team based in Kennewick, Washington. They played 4 seasons in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), the defunct development league for the National Basketball Association (NBA). The te ...

(1993–1994) and

Oklahoma City Cavalry The Lawton-Fort Sill Cavalry was a professional basketball team based in Lawton, Oklahoma. They played in the Premier Basketball League after having been in the Continental Basketball Association. They have one PBL championship and also were ...

(1994-1995). He also participated in the

USBL The United States Basketball League (USBL) was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985 and ceased operations in 2008. The USBL started in 1985 as one of the first basketball leagues to play a late-spring to ...

with two spells for the Miami Tropics in 1987 and 1988. After retiring, he operated a big and tall men's clothing store in

Lancaster, California Lancaster is a charter city in northern Los Angeles County, in the Antelope Valley of the western Mojave Desert in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 173,516, making Lancaster the 153rd largest city in the United ...

Death

On 7 September 2006, Jones was found by relatives shot dead in his apartment. He was 45 years old. According to police reports, he bled to death from a single gunshot wound to the upper torso.
The investigation of this case remains open. He is buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Long Beach, California.

Notable awards

* USBL Championship (1987) * CBA All-Star (1990)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Ozell 1960 births 2006 deaths Albany Patroons players American expatriate basketball people in Italy American men's basketball players Basketball players from Long Beach, California Cal State Fullerton Titans men's basketball players Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets players Centers (basketball) Cincinnati Slammers players Deaths by firearm in California Los Angeles Clippers players Male murder victims People murdered in California Power forwards (basketball) Quad City Thunder players San Antonio Spurs draft picks San Antonio Spurs players Tri-City Chinook players Tulsa Fast Breakers players Wichita State Shockers men's basketball players Long Beach Polytechnic High School alumni