Sam Jones, member of the BOSTON Basketball Hall of Fame, the “Mr. Clutch whose strong shot fueled the longest dynasty in the league and earned him 10 NBA titles, second only to teammate Bill Russell, has died, the team said. Former Boston Bruins striker Jimmy Hayes found dead in his Milton, Mass. A member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, he was named one of the top 50 players in N, B, A.
When Jones was selected by the Celtics outside the historically black North Carolina College in Durham (now Central North Carolina University) in the first round of the 1957 draft, he was the eighth player chosen overall, he was more amazed and apprehensive than excited. Since black colleges players had gained little national recognition at the time, he saw himself as a potential pioneer, although he questioned his chances of making a star-brimming Celtics lineup. Despite his doubts, Jones quickly impressed coach Red Auerbach. He went on to team up with K, C.
Jones (unrelated), a tenacious defender, in a defense pair that eventually replaced that of Bob Cousy and Bill Sharman, two from the N, B, A. The Joneses became part of a record-breaking streak alongside Russell, who transformed the center position with his rebound and defense, strikers Tom Heinsohn, John Havlicek and Satch Sanders, and Cousy and Sharman in their final seasons. Jones was known for using the board when most players shot directly into the hoop. Jones had supreme confidence in that shot.
As he put it, “I felt like making a tray. Samuel Jones was born on June 24, 1933, in Wilmington, NC,. At North Carolina College, playing for Hall of Fame coach John B. McLendon in a Division II program, was a good shooter, scoring a total of 1,170 points, and an outstanding rebounder.
Auerbach had never seen Jones play in college. But he recruited him when Bones McKinney, a North Carolinian and one of Auerbach's former players, raved about him. Jones had planned to become a teacher, but tried his hand at the Celtics training camp. He was a reserve for several seasons before taking over Sharman.
Although he was 6-foot-4, tall for a guard at the time, he was faster than many smaller guards. Jones retired from the Celtics in 1969 and was later head coach at Federal City College in Washington (now the University of the District of Columbia) and Central North Carolina. He was an assistant coach for the N, B, A. Jones averaged 17.7 points per game in the regular season for the Celtics, but was particularly dangerous in the playoffs.
He hit a jump shot over Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors in the final seconds of Game 7 in the 1962 Eastern Division playoff final, giving Boston a 109-107 win. He had five of the Celtics' 10 overtime points against the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 7 of the league finals, helping propel Boston to a fourth straight championship. Jones enjoyed getting the best of the 7-foot-1 Chamberlain. In a fourth quarter full of Game 5 fight in that Celtics-Warriors series, Jones collided with Chamberlain, who surpassed him by almost 50 pounds, and they exchanged dislikes.
When Chamberlain grabbed Jones' wrist, perhaps in a gesture of peace, Jones ran off the court. Boston Celtics legend Sam Jones died at 88, team confirmed to Associated Press. Jones had been hospitalized in Florida. The team plans a moment of silence before Friday's game against the Phoenix Suns in honor of Jones.
Jones was a key figure in the Boston dynasty in the 1960s, winning 10 total NBA championships as a member of the Celtics. Boston finally forced a Game 7 in Los Angeles, where the Celtics captured their eleventh title in what was Jones and Bill Russell's last game. Celtics coach Ime Udoka also commented on Jones's pass ahead of Friday afternoon's Boston game against the Phoenix Suns at TD Garden. BOSTON (CBS) - Jim Corsi, a Newton native who made it to the Major Leagues, won a World Series and pitched for the Boston Red Sox, died of cancer.
He was subsequently inducted into both the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame and the NAIA Basketball Hall of Fame before finally earning consecration to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1984. Bob Neumeier, the affable broadcaster known as “Neumy” for legions of sports fans familiar with his work on Ch. Neumeier, originally from Weymouth and a graduate of Syracuse University, was a much-loved item on the Boston sports media scene for nearly 40 years. The Hayes family has deep roots in the Boston hockey scene; Jimmy's younger brother Kevin also played for BC and currently plays for the Philadelphia Flyers, while the Hayes are cousins of former NHL players Keith Tkachuk and Tom Fitzgerald.
Celtics legend Sam Jones, 10-time NBA champion, dies at age 88 and originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Jones will be remembered as “one of the most prolific champions in all professional sports. . .
