James McCaffrey is a former basketball player who played collegiately at Holy Cross and was a 6th round selection in the

1986 NBA draft The 1986 NBA draft was held on June 17, 1986. Overview and aftermath This draft holds the record for the most players (out of prospects chosen) who later debuted in the NBA, with 66. Drug and health issues involving drafted players There were ...

. A native of Rutland, Vermont, he was named one of

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

's Greatest Sports Figures from the State of Vermont.

High school career

McCaffrey attended and played for Rutland High School, and is credited with scoring 1,111 points across two varsity seasons. During his time playing for the Red Raiders, they achieved back-to-back state title game appearances at Patrick Gym. McCaffrey scored 55 points in one game in 1981, which is the fifth all-time in the history of Vermont high school boys basketball. He also set a single-game state tournament scoring record with a 48-point performance and earned all-state honors, averaging 30 points per game.

College career

McCaffrey spent the first two seasons of his college career at in-state institution St. Michael's College where he led the team in scoring for two seasons, including 21 points per game in his second year. McCaffrey transferred to Holy Cross and in his first season with the Crusaders, averaged 21.7 points per game en route to

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC, ) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I. Its current 13 full members are located in five Northeastern states: Connecticut, Maryland, Massachuse ...

first-team all-conference honors. In his senior season, McCaffrey's scoring average climbed to 22.8 points per game and he was named tournament MVP of the 1986

MAAC men's basketball tournament The MAAC men's basketball tournament (popularly known as the MAAC Tournament) is the conference championship tournament in basketball for the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). The tournament has been held every year since 1982, the MAAC' ...

, as well as picking up first-team all-conference honors. McCaffrey set the

Hart Center Hart Center at the Luth Athletic Complex is the main athletic center at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts. It was built in 1975 and is home to the Holy Cross Crusaders athletic teams. Description The center is named for ...

scoring record with a 46-point performance against

Iona Iona (; , sometimes simply ''Ì'') is an island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there are other buildings on the island. Iona Abbey was a centre of Gaeli ...

in 1985, which earned him Sports Illustrated Player of the Week Honors. He finished his Holy Cross career with 1,178 points and as of 2023, ranks 4th all-time in scoring average (22.2), 6th all-time in free-throw percentage (.808), and is the all-time leader in average minutes played per game (35.5).

Post-college

After college, McCaffrey was taken in the sixth round of the

by the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

. He was released in training camp by the Suns and also attended camp 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 Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

. McCaffrey played the 1987 season with the Cincinnati Slammers of 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 m ...

and also played in the

United States Basketball League 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 ...

. He appeared in a

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ad alongside

Larry Bird Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend" Bird is widely regarded a ...

after graduating from college, playing the role of a custodian. McCaffrey was inducted into the Holy Cross Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992 and the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003. He was also a member of the

Vermont Sports Hall of Fame The Vermont Sports Hall of Fame is an athletics hall of fame in the U.S. state of Vermont. Above all, induction "is for accomplishments in sports and recreation that generate a great source of pride to the state." Launched as a project in 2011, ...

Class of 2015.

Personal life

McCaffrey currently works in the finance industry in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. His children were all collegiate athletes; one son, James, played football at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

, while his younger son, Mike, played at Holy Cross. McCaffrey's daughter,

Stephanie Stephanie is a female name that comes from the Greek name Στέφανος (Stephanos) meaning "crown, wreath, garland". The male form is Stephen. Forms of Stephanie in other languages include the German "Stefanie", the Italian, Czech, Pol ...

, was a women's soccer player at Boston College, and is a former professional and international soccer player.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCaffrey, Jim Living people American men's basketball players Basketball players from Vermont Cincinnati Slammers players Holy Cross Crusaders men's basketball players People from Rutland (city), Vermont Phoenix Suns draft picks Saint Michael's Purple Knights men's basketball players Year of birth missing (living people)