Sam Jones
(Born 1933)
Hall of Fame Induction: 1984
Card Shown:
2012-13 Panini Flawless
Memorable Marks
Position: SG
Height: 6’4″
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Sam Jones, “Mr. Clutch,” was a key member of the Boston Celtics NBA dynasty in the late 1950s and 1960s. When Jones was drafted by the Celtics, who had just won the NBA Championship, he was miserable and thought that it was the end of his basketball career. The Celtics already had four highly-talented guards including Bob Cousy and Bill Sharman. Sam doubted that he would be able to make the team.
However, Jones did much more than just make the team. Known for his constant movement and effective bank shot, he started his career coming off the bench. Sam eventually became one of the featured players on the Celtics championship teams. In 1964-65 Jones averaged a career-high 25.9 points per game as the Celtics won another title. The two other top scorers on that team were John Havlicek with 18.3 points per game and Bill Russell with 14.1 points per game (as well as 24.1 rebounds per game).
Awards and Honors
- Jones won ten NBA Championships as a member of the Boston Celtics. Bill Russell holds the record with eleven NBA Championships. No one else has more than eight and the four players that have eight championships were also members of the same Celtics dynasty: John Havlicek, Tom Heinsohn, K.C. Jones, and Tom Sanders.
- Sam was known as a clutch player who stepped up with big plays at the end of close games. In Game 7 of the 1962 Eastern Conference Finals against the Philadelphia Warriors, Jones hit a key shot with the score tied 107-107. With two seconds remaining, his shot sailed over the outstretched arms of Wilt Chamberlain and through the net, sending the Celtics to the NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. In Game 7 of the Finals, Jones scored five of the Celtics ten points in overtime as Boston won 110-107 and won the 1962 NBA Championship.
- Sam was a five-time NBA All-Star in 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, and 1968.
- He was also named to the All-NBA Second Team three times during his career.
- Sam was selected as one of The 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996. He had previously been named to the NBA’s 25th Anniversary Team.
Points of Interest
- Jones played college basketball under Hall of Fame coach John McLendon at North Carolina Central College. He was named to three All-Conference teams during his college career.
- The Boston Celtics, and Red Auerbach, surprised everyone by drafting the relatively unknown Jones with the eighth pick in the first round of the 1957 NBA Draft.
- Coming out of college, Sam had decided to become either a high school teacher or a professional basketball player. Before he reported to the Celtics he had been offered a job as a teacher. He asked the school for $500 more than their original offer and would have become a teacher if they had agreed. They didn’t, so Jones joined the Celtics and became a Hall of Fame basketball champion.
- Sam retired from the NBA with averages of 17.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. He and Bill Russell both retired after the 1968-69 season and that effectively ended the Celtics dynasty. The next year they finished in sixth place in their division with a 34-48 record.
- On March 9, 1969 the Celtics retired Sam Jones’ number 24 jersey.
Statistics
Sam Jones Statistics
provided by Basketball-Reference.com