Clifford Ray (born January 21, 1949) is an American former 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 ...

coach and player who is a consultant for the

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

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, 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 i ...

(NBA). He played three of his ten seasons in the NBA with the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...

from 1971 to 1974, and the other seven with 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 ...

from 1974 to 1981.

Career

Ray played his college basketball at the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachel ...

degree (he can play most

woodwind instrument Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and r ...

s). Selected in the third round of the 1971 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls, Ray was, from the start, a very effective defender and rebounder. Ray was named to the 1972

NBA All-Rookie Team The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches who are not allowed to vote for player ...

, and led the NBA in rebounds per minute played in each of his first two seasons. He spent three seasons with the Bulls, his best being 1973–74 during which Ray averaged 9.3 points and 12.2 rebounds per game, and the Bulls reached the

NBA Western Conference Finals The National Basketball Association Conference Finals are the Eastern and Western championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA), a major professional basketball league in North America. The NBA was founded in 1946 as the Baske ...

for the first time. Ray and $100,000 were sent to the Golden State Warriors for

Nate Thurmond Nathaniel Thurmond (July 25, 1941 – July 16, 2016) was an American basketball player who spent the majority of his 14-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Golden State Warriors franchise. He played the center and ...

in an exchange of centers just prior to the 1974–75 season on September 3, 1974. The trade resulted in the Warriors receiving a quality ballplayer who was eight years younger than Thurmond and additional fiscal stability. In

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

the Warriors, led by

Rick Barry Richard Francis Dennis Barry III (born March 28, 1944) is an American retired professional basketball player who starred at the NCAA, American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) levels. Barry ranks among the ...

and coached by

Al Attles Alvin Austin Attles Jr. (born November 7, 1936) is an American former professional basketball player and coach best known for his longtime association with the Golden State Warriors. Nicknamed the "Destroyer", he played the point guard position a ...

, won the NBA championship. Ray led the team in rebounding and anchored the defense, finishing second in minutes played per game, after Barry. The Warriors defeated Ray's former team, the Chicago Bulls, in the Western Conference finals before sweeping the

Washington Bullets The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

in the

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 a ...

. Ray is one of a handful of players to have played at least ten seasons in the pros and to have recorded more rebounds than points for his career, a list that includes Basketball Hall of Famers

Bill Russell William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Va ...

Wes Unseld Westley Sissel Unseld Sr. (March 14, 1946June 2, 2020) was an American professional basketball player, coach and executive. He spent his entire National Basketball Association (NBA) career with the Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets. Unseld ...

Dennis Rodman Dennis Keith Rodman (born May 13, 1961) is an American former professional basketball player. Known for his fierce defensive and rebounding abilities, his biography on the official NBA website states that he is "arguably the best reboundin ...

Dikembe Mutombo Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo (born June 25, 1966) is a Congolese-American former professional basketball player. Mutombo played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Outside basketball, he has becom ...

and Ben Wallace. After his playing career, Ray worked as an assistant coach with the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Southwest Division. Th ...

in 1987. He also coached in the

Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) (originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association) was a men's professional basketball mi ...

, where he landed his first head coaching job with the Fort Wayne Fury, replacing former teammate

as head coach at the end of the season. Later, he worked as a

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

assistant before returning to Golden State as an assistant coach. He also worked as an assistant coach with the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

and from 2005 to 2010 was an assistant coach for 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 ...

, who won an NBA championship in 2008. He was hired by the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

in 2012. On June 5, 2013, new Kings coach Michael Malone announced that the 2012–13 assistant coaches would not be retained for the 2013–14 season. In 2016, Ray was hired by the

as a consultant.

Dolphin rescue

In 1978, Ray made headlines for saving a dolphin's life at the

Marine World/Africa USA Marine World/Africa USA was an animal theme park located in the Redwood Shores area of Redwood City, California. The park was named Marine World when it first opened in 1968 before merging with the failing land-animal park called Africa USA in ...

amusement park in

Redwood City, California Redwood City is a city on the San Francisco Peninsula in Northern California's Bay Area, approximately south of San Francisco, and northwest of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans its earliest inhabitation by the Ohlone people to being a ...

. A

bottlenose dolphin Bottlenose dolphins are aquatic mammals in the genus ''Tursiops.'' They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus definitively contains two species: the comm ...

named "Mr. Spock" had swallowed a bolt with a protruding sharp screw while maintenance was being performed on its holding tank. The park veterinarian was unwilling to perform a risky operation to remove the bolt from the dolphin's first stomach where the object lay just beyond his reach. His remark that he needed longer arms led Marine World president and basketball fan Mike Demetrios to ask for Ray's assistance, as his arms measured at three feet nine inches (114 centimeters). With gloves, lubrication, and guidance, Ray successfully reached into the animal's throat and retrieved the object without causing any additional harm.

References

External links

NBA Career stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Official Clifford Ray Radio Show
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ray, Clifford 1949 births Living people African-American basketball coaches African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from South Carolina Basketball players from South Carolina Boston Celtics assistant coaches Centers (basketball) Chicago Bulls draft picks Chicago Bulls players Continental Basketball Association coaches Dallas Mavericks assistant coaches Golden State Warriors assistant coaches Golden State Warriors players New Jersey Nets assistant coaches Oklahoma Sooners men's basketball players People from Union, South Carolina Power forwards (basketball) 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople

Career

Dolphin rescue

See also

References

External links