Larry Jones (born September 22, 1942) 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 (appro ...

player. He most notably played in the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

(ABA), where he was the first player to reach 5,000 career points. He also had shorter stints in the rival

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA).

College career

Jones only started playing regularly for East High in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...

, during his senior year. As a 6'2 forward he wasn't considered big enough by major colleges and was recruited by the

University of Toledo The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a Public university, public research university in Toledo, Ohio, United States. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, ...

for whom he played in the

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region (North America), Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members co ...

(MAC) from 1960. He was repositioned as a guard by Toledo coach Ed Melvin and became a major player for the Rockets. Jones was a unanimous selection in the 1962 All-MAC First Team chosen by the conference's coaches, having made the Second Team a year earlier. He injured his wrist in Toledo's season opener against

Butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments, with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantries, pantr ...

on 1 December 1962 after a heavy fall where he also hit his head. Jones, who scored 35 points in the game, managed to play the last five minutes of the game with what was thought to be a sprained wrist. It later emerged the wrist was fractured and he had to

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Sports * Redshirt (college sports) Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically ...

the rest of the 1962–63 season. His eligibility was then extended for another season. One year later, in December 1963, he helped Toledo score a "monumental upset" over

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

(at the time ranked second nationally). His coach Melvin described him as a "tremendous total player – rebounder, playmaker, scorer and defender" for his form that season after he averaged over 27 points the four previous games. Jones, the Toledo captain and all-time second highest scorer, suffered a fractured knuckle on 13 January 1964 when he fell on ice after a practice. Before he could return from injury, he was suspended in early February for undisclosed disciplinary reasons. It later emerged that he had been involved in a paternity suit. However all charges were dropped, his name was cleared and he was reinstated in early March, allowing him to play the final two games of the season. He was an honorable mention

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

in the 1964

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selection.

Professional career

Early career (1964–1967)

Jones was first drafted by the NBA's

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

with a fifth round pick (43rd overall) in the 1963 NBA draft, however he played another college season instead of turning professional.( see College career). He then re-entered the 1964 NBA draft where he was chosen in the third round (20th overall pick) by the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially 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 Atlan ...

. During the 1964–65 season he was sent by the Sixers to the

Wilkes-Barre Barons The Wilkes-Barre Barons were a basketball team from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The Barons played between 1933 and 1980 in different United States, American sports league, leagues. The team won 11 titles during this time, including while playin ...

of the Eastern Professional Basketball League (EPBL) where he averaged 20 points per game. He was recalled to Philadelphia on 2 March 1965 due to injuries to backcourt players. At the end of an NBA season where he had averaged 5.7 points in 23 games, Jones was released. Following his release, Jones played from 1965 to 1967 in the EPBL, again with Wilkes-Barre. He was selected to the All-EPBL Second Team in 1966. He was part of the Baltimore Bullets pre-season squad but was released in October 1966 and returned to the Barons.

Denver Rockets (1967–1970)

When the American Basketball Association was created in 1967, Jones called and wrote to every team in the league, the Denver Rockets were the only one to answer. He signed a $10,000 contract with the Rockets, the Eastern League disputed it and he had to stay in the team plane during his first game in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

to avoid a

subpoena A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...

. Thanks to his excellent jump-shooting, Jones became a major player for Denver and the ABA in general, making three consecutive All-ABA First Teams from 1967 to 1970. He scored 30 points or more in 23 consecutive games during the 1968–69 ABA season. This included 52 points in a 133–123 win over the

Houston Mavericks The Houston Mavericks were a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA). They played in the upstart league's first two seasons, from 1967–68 ABA season, 1967 to 1968–69 ABA season, 1969. Their home arena was the Sam Houston Co ...

on 21 March 1969 which equalled his own club record. During this match he became the first ABA player to score over 2,000 points in a season. He finished the regular season with a league-leading 2,133 points as Denver lost in the playoffs first round to the Oakland Oaks. Jones reached 5,000 career ABA points on 15 January 1970, becoming the first player in the league to do so. He scored 23 points against the

Dallas Chaparrals The Dallas Chaparrals were a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA). The team moved to San Antonio, Texas, for the 1973–74 season and were renamed the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs joined the National Basketball Association ...

to reach the mark, including two free-throws at the end of the game to secure the win for Denver. During the 1969–70 season he averaged 24.9 points in the regular season and 26.6 during the

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as the Rockets lost in the West finals. He was the top scorer of the 1970 ABA All-Star Game with 30 points, adding 6 rebounds and 5 assists. As the ABA Players' Association (ABAPA) President, Jones and the ABAPA threatened to sit out the game if the association was not recognized by ABA owners. They eventually arrived at the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum at 1:39 pm, only twenty minutes before the game start. Despite his tally, Jones was pipped to the All-Star Game MVP award (and assorted prizes such as a one-year Dodge Challenger lease) by Denver teammate Spencer Haywood. This reflected Denver's payroll where Jones was replaced as the Rockets' highest-paid player by Haywood, a rookie, when he signed in 1969. In fact Haywood's $1.9 million contract (which included a $50,000 signing bonus) dwarfed Jones' $23,000 per year. Though Haywood left for the NBA after one season (as his contract deferred most of his salary for decades), Jones wasn't offered a revalued contract. He protested (once wearing a "railroad suit, claiming that was all he could afford") and obtained a trade to another team. Jones was traded to the Floridians in June 1970 when Denver sent him, Greg Wittman and a No. 2 draft pick to the Floridians in exchange for Don Sidle, Larry Cannon and a No. 1 draft pick. His Denver career ended with averages of 25.4 points and 4.2 assists in 226 regular-season games and 25.1 points and 5.6 assists in 20 playoff games.

Later ABA career (1970–1973)

Jones joined the Floridians as they replaced their entire squad after finishing the 1969–70 season with a 23–61 record. Jones and teammate Mack Calvin contributed a 51.5 point average during the 1970–71 season which was the highest scoring backcourt ever in professional basketball. He averaged over 20 points for the Floridians over two seasons in which they reached the playoffs. However the club struggled with attendances and the first round playoff loss to the

Virginia Squires The Virginia Squires were a basketball team based in Norfolk, Virginia, and playing in several other Virginia cities. They were members of the American Basketball Association from 1970 to 1976. The team originated in 1967 as the Oakland Oaks, a ...

on 6 April 1972 was their final game. The ABA bought the club and folded it, organising a dispersal draft in June where the four worst ABA teams had the first picks on Floridians and

Pittsburgh Condors The Pittsburgh Condors were a professional basketball team in the original American Basketball Association (ABA). Originally called the Pittsburgh Pipers, they were a charter franchise of the ABA and captured the first league title. The team pla ...

players. The

Utah Stars The Utah Stars were an American Basketball Association (ABA) team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Under head coach Bill Sharman the Stars were the first major professional basketball team to use a pre-game shootaround. History prior to moving to ...

selected Jones with the third pick. Jones did not fit in at Utah, where he was the No. 4 guard as the team had many shooters and he was said to be weak on defense and team play. He left the team in December as he was exchanged for Bob Warren in a straight swap with the Dallas Chaparrals. He reached 10,000 career ABA points during an 11 February 1973 game against the San Diego Conquistadors, becoming the fourth ABA player to reach the milestone during the season. He contributed a season-best 30 points, including a layup six seconds from time that helped claim an overtime 115–113 win for the Chaparrals. At the end of the season Jones was placed on waivers by the Chaparrals and was not claimed by another club. It was speculated that his tenure of the head of the Players' Association discouraged clubs from signing the former all-time ABA scoring leader. He claimed no ABA team even called him to make a lower salary offer.

NBA return and retirement (1973–1975)

Having considered ending his professional career to finish a doctorate in counseling, Jones was offered a lifeline by

Gene Shue Eugene William Shue (December 18, 1931 – April 3, 2022) was an American professional basketball player and coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Shue was one of the top guards of the early days of the NBA and an influential figure ...

, coach of his former NBA team Philadelphia, who signed him for the Sixers. The Sixers had finished the previous season with a 9–73 record, the worst in the history of the NBA. Hoping to prove those who considered him "over the hill" wrong, Jones contributed double figure scoring while starting eight of ten games between November and December as the Sixers won five times to reach a 9–15 record. This included 20 points in a 108–106 overtime win over 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 of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

and an NBA career-best 22 in a 20 November win over the

Kansas City-Omaha 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 Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The Kings are the ...

. He finished the 1973–74 NBA season averaging 10 points per game, following which he was released by the Sixers in October 1974. In November, he participated in the European Professional Basketball League draft with other free agents. He was signed by the Munich Eagles to both play for and coach the Germany-based club. He was one of the best players in the league, averaging 23 points (second best for the league) and a league-topping 7 assists per game when the season prematurely ended in March after 30 games. Jones played one game for the Wilkes-Barre Barons of the renamed Eastern Basketball Association during the 1975–76 season.

Coaching career

After his first coaching experience in the European Professional Basketball League, Jones was hired by another former European coach, Herb Brown, when he joined the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

in 1976. He served as assistant coach with the Pistons for two NBA seasons, keeping his post when Brown was fired in 1977. He was not retained for the 1978–79 season after incoming coach

Dick Vitale Richard "Dick" John Vitale (; born June 9, 1939), also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well known for his 41-year tenure as a college basketball broadc ...

hired other assistants such as long-time friend

Richie Adubato Richard Adam Adubato (born November 23, 1937) is an American former basketball coach in the National Basketball Association. He has served as head coach for three NBA teams, the Detroit Pistons, the Dallas Mavericks, and the Orlando Magic. He ...

. Jones was then the head coach of the Las Vegas Dealers of the Western Basketball Association during its inaugural 1978–79 season following which the unstable league folded. Jones next served as director of player personnel for the

Women's Professional Basketball League The Women's Professional Basketball League (abbreviated WBL) was a professional women's basketball league in the United States. The league played three seasons from the fall of 1978 to the spring of 1981. The league was the first professional w ...

until the league folded in 1981. His following position was also in women's basketball, coaching his hometown team, the Columbus Minks, in the Women's American Basketball Association (WABA). The WABA played its only season from October to November 1984, its last game before folding was the All-Star Game on December 16 where Jones coached the All-Star team against champions Dallas Diamonds.

Personal

After his playing career, Jones worked as a state corrections official in Columbus. Married with two daughters and one son, he conducts free summer basketball camps for youngsters in his hometown. He credits his high school coach Jackie Moore for helping him "go from a poor student to an honor student" and wants to follow his example in helping youths.

Career statistics

NBA/ABA

Source

Regular season

{, class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;" , - ! Year ! Team ! GP ! GS ! MPG ! FG% ! 3P% ! FT% ! RPG ! APG ! SPG ! BPG ! PPG , - , style="text-align:left";, , style="text-align:left;",

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, 23 , , , , 15.6 , , .307 , , , , .712 , , 2.5 , , 1.7 , , , , , , 5.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

(ABA) , 76 , , , , 40.6 , , .427 , , .190 , , .776 , , 7.9 , , 3.6 , , , , , , 22.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 75 , , , , 40.6 , , .465 , , .240 , , .778 , , 6.6 , , 3.4 , , , , , , 28.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 75 , , , , 40.4 , , .434 , , .248 , , .791 , , 5.2 , , 5.7 , , , , , , 24.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

(ABA) , 84 , , , , 43.0 , , .467 , , .363 , , .802 , , 5.4 , , 4.6 , , , , , , 24.3 , - , style="text-align:left";, , style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 66 , , , , 34.2 , , .531 , , .300 , , .804 , , 4.7 , , 3.2 , , , , , , 17.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

(ABA) , 27 , , , , 16.6 , , .438 , , .364 , , .817 , , 2.3 , , 1.6 , , , , , , 6.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

(ABA) , 53 , , , , 23.7 , , .468 , , .261 , , .832 , , 3.4 , , 3.1 , , , , , , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 72 , , 60 , , 26.1 , , .423 , , , , .838 , , 2.6 , , 3.2 , , 1.2 , , .3 , , 10.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career (NBA) , 95 , , 60 , , 23.5 , , .400 , , , , .815 , , 2.5 , , 2.8 , , 1.2 , , .3 , , 9.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career (ABA) , 456 , , , , 36.7 , , .459 , , .277 , , .791 , , 5.4 , , 3.9 , , , , , , 21.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career (overall) , 551 , , 60, , 34.4 , , .453 , , .277 , , .793 , , 4.9 , , 3.7 , , 1.2 , , .3 , , 19.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", All-Star (ABA) , 4 , , 2 , , 26.8 , , .524 , , .333 , , .731 , , 6.5 , , 4.3 , , , , , , 16.0

Playoffs

{, class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;" , - ! Year ! Team ! GP ! MPG ! FG% ! 3P% ! FT% ! RPG ! APG ! PPG , - , style="text-align:left;",

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The First Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lynd ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 5 , , 5.0 , , .417 , , , , .636 , , .8 , , .4 , , 3.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

, style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 1 , , 41.0 , , .600 , , – , , .625 , , 4.0 , , 4.0 , , 29.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1969 , style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 7 , , 40.3 , , .358 , , .375 , , .724 , , 7.7 , , 4.6 , , 22.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

, style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 12 , , 44.6 , , .546 , , .250 , , .871 , , 5.3 , , 6.3 , , 26.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...

, style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 6 , , 36.0 , , .395 , , .250 , , .917 , , 4.2 , , 6.2 , , 17.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

, style="text-align:left;",

(ABA) , 4 , , 28.8 , , .342 , , .000 , , .824 , , 3.3 , , 2.3 , , 10.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career (ABA) , 30 , , 39.6 , , .454 , , .270 , , .819 , , 5.3 , , 5.3 , , 21.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career (overall) , 35 , , 34.7 , , .453 , , .270 , , .811 , , 4.7 , , 4.6 , , 18.9

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Larry 1942 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen ABA All-Stars American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate sportspeople in West Germany American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Ohio Basketball players from Columbus, Ohio Dallas Chaparrals players Denver Rockets players Detroit Pistons assistant coaches Expatriate basketball people in West Germany Forwards (basketball) Guards (basketball) Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Miami Floridians players Philadelphia 76ers draft picks Philadelphia 76ers players Toledo Rockets men's basketball players Utah Stars players Western Basketball Association coaches Wilkes-Barre Barons players