On Friday, NBA Hall of Famer and former Taylor resident K.C. Jones passed away at age 88 in Connecticut after battling Alzheimer’s disease for several years.
Leaving Williamson County for California at age 10, Jones went on to play basketball collegiately at the University of San Francisco before joining the Boston Celtics and winning eight consecutive NBA championships from 1959 through 1966. Jones also won four more championships in a head or assistant coaching role.
According to the New York Times, he wasn’t known for his scoring but was known for doing all the work that doesn’t show up in box scores. Former Celtic coach Red Auerbach once said that Jones could pester opponents to the point where they watch their back constantly when Jones was in the game.
In addition to being inducted to the NBA Hall of Fame in 1989, the former Celtic was a U.S. military veteran who also spent time in the NFL for the Los Angeles Rams after scout Pete Rozelle saw him playing at the base in Ft. Leonard Wood, MO, according to the Taylor Daily Press.
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