Hours before their Christmas NBA game against Brooklyn, the Boston Celtics announced the death of one of their legends: KC Jones. The former point guard and coach was 88 years old.
Born in Texas, Jones is one of the most successful men in American basketball. “The Celtics family mourns the passing of twelve-time NBA champion, two-time NCAA (college) champion, Olympic gold medalist KC Jones,” the franchise wrote on its Twitter account.
Au Hall of Fame
A formidable defender, Jones played nine seasons with the Celtics from 1958 to 1967 and apart from his last season, he was crowned champion each time. Only two of his teammates at the time did better than his eight titles: Sam Jones (9) and Bill Russell (11).
As a coach, he landed two new rings as an assistant with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1972, then in 1981 with the Celtics. Jones went on to land the head coach job of his lifelong franchise, which he led to the NBA title in 1984 and 1986.
The former leader was inducted into the Hall of Fame, the pantheon of North American league legends, in 1989. His death comes a year and a half after that of one of his illustrious teammates, John Havlicek
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