Professional career Larry Jones (basketball)

1 professional career

1.1 career (1964-1967)
1.2 denver rockets (1967-1970)
1.3 later aba career (1970-1973)
1.4 nba return , retirement (1973-1975)

professional career
early career (1964-1967)

jones first drafted nba s los angeles lakers fifth round pick (43rd overall) in 1963 nba draft, played college season instead of turning professional.(see college career). re-entered 1964 nba draft chosen in third round (20th overall pick) philadelphia 76ers. during 1964-65 season sent sixers wilkes-barre barons of eastern league averaged 20 points per game. recalled philadelphia on 2 march 1965 due injuries backcourt players. @ end of nba season had averaged 5.7 points in 23 games, jones released.

following release, jones played 1965 1967 in eastern league, again wilkes-barre. part of baltimore bullets pre-season squad released in october 1966 , returned barons.

denver rockets (1967-1970)

when american basketball association created in 1967, jones called , wrote every team in league, denver rockets 1 answer. signed $10,000 contract rockets, eastern league disputed , had stay in team plane during first game in pittsburgh avoid subpoena.

thanks excellent jump-shooting, jones became major player denver , aba in general, making 3 consecutive all-aba first teams 1967 1970. scored 30 points or more in 23 consecutive games during 1968–69 aba season. included 52 points in 133-123 win on houston mavericks on 21 march 1969 equalled own club record. during match became first aba player score on 2,000 points in season. finished regular season league-leading 2,133 points denver lost in playoffs first round oakland oaks.

jones reached 5,000 career aba points on 15 january 1970, becoming first player in league so. scored 23 points against dallas chaparrals reach mark, including 2 free-throws @ end of game secure win denver. during 1969-70 season averaged 24.9 points in regular season , 26.6 during playoffs rockets lost in west finals. top scorer of 1970 aba all-star game 30 points, adding 6 rebounds , 5 assists. perhaps more notable off-court contribution aba players association (abapa) president. jones , abapa reportedly threatened sit out game if association not recognised aba owners. arrived @ indiana state fairgrounds coliseum @ 1:39 pm, twenty minutes before game start.

despite tally, jones pipped all-star game mvp award (and assorted prizes such one-year dodge challenger lease) denver teammate spencer haywood. reflected denver s payroll jones replaced rockets highest-paid player haywood, rookie, when signed in 1969. in fact haywood s $1.9 million contract (which included $50,000 signing bonus) dwarfed jones $23,000 per year. though haywood left nba after 1 season (as contract deferred of salary decades), jones wasn t offered revalued contract. protested (once wearing railroad suit, claiming afford ) , obtained trade team. jones traded floridians in june 1970 when denver sent him, greg wittman , no. 2 draft pick floridians in exchange don sidle, larry cannon , no. 1 draft pick. denver career ended averages of 25.4 points , 4.2 assists in 226 regular-season games , 25.1 points , 5.6 assists in 20 playoff games.

later aba career (1970-1973)

jones joined floridians replaced entire squad after finishing 1969-70 season 23-61 record. jones , teammate mack calvin contributed 51.5 point average during 1970-71 season highest scoring backcourt ever in professional basketball. averaged on 20 points floridians on 2 seasons in reached playoffs. club struggled attendances , first round playoff loss virginia squires on 6 april 1972 final game. aba brought club , folded it, organising dispersal draft in june 4 worst aba teams had first picks on floridians , pittsburgh condors players. utah stars selected jones third pick.

jones did not fit in @ utah, no. 4 guard team had many shooters , said weak on defense , team play. left team in december exchanged bob warren in straight swap dallas chaparrals. reached 10,000 career aba points during 11 february 1973 game against san diego conquistadors, becoming fourth aba player reach milestone during season. contributed season-best 30 points, including layup 6 seconds time helped claim overtime 115-113 win chaparrals.

at end of season jones placed on waivers chaparrals , not claimed club. speculated tenure of head of players association discouraged clubs signing former all-time aba scoring leader. claimed no aba team called him make lower salary offer.

nba return , retirement (1973-1975)

having considered ending professional career finish doctorate in counseling, jones offered lifeline gene shue, coach of former nba team philadelphia, signed him sixers. sixers had finished previous season 9-73 record, worst in history of nba. hoping prove considered him on hill wrong, jones contributed double figure scoring while starting 8 of ten games between november , december sixers won 5 times reach 9-15 record. included 20 points in 108-106 overtime win on houston rockets , nba career-best 22 in 20 november win on kansas city-omaha kings. finished 1973–74 nba season averaging 10 points per game, following released sixers in october 1974.

in november, participated in european professional basketball league (epbl) draft other free agents. signed munich eagles both play , coach germany-based club.

he 1 of best players in league, averaging 23 points (second best league) , league-topping 7 assists per game when season prematurely ended in march after 30 games.

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