Clifford Ray

Clifford Ray

Ray as an assistant coach in Game 4 of the 2008 NBA Playoffs against the Atlanta Hawks
No. 14, 44
Center / Power forward
Personal information
Date of birth	January 21, 1949 (1949-01-21) (age 62)
Place of birth	Union, South Carolina
Nationality	American
High school	Sims HS (Union, South Carolina)
Listed height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight	230 lb (104 kg)
Career information
College	Oklahoma
NBA Draft	1971 / Round: 3 / Pick: 40th overall
Selected by the Chicago Bulls
Pro career	1971–1981
Career history
1971–1974	Chicago Bulls
1974–1981	Golden State Warriors
Career highlights and awards
NBA Champion (1975) NBA All-Rookie First Team (1972)
Career statistics
Points	5,821 (7.4 ppg)
Rebounds	6,953 (8.9 rpg)
Assists	1,728 (2.2 apg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Clifford Ray (born January 21, 1949 in Union, South Carolina) is an American basketball coach and former professional basketball player. A 6–9 center, he played three of his ten seasons in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls (1971–74) and the other seven with the Golden State Warriors (1974–81).

Career

Ray has won a NBA championship as a player and as a coach. Ray played his college basketball at the University of Oklahoma, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (he can play most woodwind instruments). Selected in the third round of the 1971 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls, Ray was, from the start, a very effective defender and rebounder. Ray was named to the 1972 NBA All-Rookie Team, and led the NBA in rebounds per minute played in each of his first two seasons. He spent three seasons with the Bulls, his best being 1973–74 during which Ray averaged 9.3 points and 12.2 rebounds per game, and the Bulls reached the Western Conference Finals for the first time.

After the 1973–74 season Ray was traded to Golden State for fellow center Nate Thurmond. In 1975 the Warriors, led by Rick Barry and coached by Al Attles, won the NBA championship. Ray led the team in rebounding and anchored the defense, finishing second in minutes played per game, after Barry. The Warriors defeated Ray's former team, the Chicago Bulls, in the Western Conference finals before sweeping the Washington Bullets in the NBA Finals. [1]

Ray is one of a handful of players to have played at least ten seasons in the pros and to have recorded more rebounds (6953 over 784 games for an 8.9 average) than points (5821, for a 7.4 average) for his career.

After his playing career, Ray worked as an assistant coach with the Dallas Mavericks 1987. He also coached in the Continental Basketball Association, where he landed his first head coaching job with the Fort Wayne Fury, replacing former teammate Rick Barry as head coach at the end of the season. Later, he worked as a New Jersey Nets assistant before returning to Golden State as an assistant coach. He also worked as an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic and from 2005–2010 was an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics, with whom he won an NBA championship in 2008.

Dolphin rescue

In 1978, Ray was in the news for an entirely different reason: he helped save a dolphin's life. At Marine World (then located in Redwood City, California and now in Vallejo, California), during maintenance in the tank of a bottlenose dolphin named "Dr. Spock", the dolphin swallowed a bolt with a protruding sharp screw. The veterinarian was unwilling to perform a risky operation while the screw was still in the dolphin's first stomach, just inches beyond his reach. His frustrated suggestion that he needed longer arms led Marine World President Mike Demetrios, a big basketball fan, to ask local star Ray (whose arms are 3 feet 9 inches, or 114 centimeters, long) if he could help. With gloves, lubrication, and guidance, he was able to reach down Spock's throat and retrieve the screw before it could cause more damage.^{[1] [2]}

References

1. ^ Springer, Shira. "Ray jumps into job". Boston Globe, May 24, 2006.
2. ^ Hartlaub, Peter. "Did Clifford Ray really save a Dolphin's life?".

External links

• NBA Career stats at Basketball-Reference.com
• Bio from Boston Celtics official site
• Official Clifford Ray Radio Show

Persondata
Name	Ray, Clifford
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	January 21, 1949
Place of birth	Union, South Carolina
Date of death
Place of death