Today in Boston Celtics history, Hall of Fame Celtics head coach KC Jones unexpectedly resigned as Boston’s coach following the end of the 1987-88 NBA season. Jones, an eight-time NBA champion with the team as a point guard, went on to secure two additional titles as his team’s head coach, winning in 1984 and 1986. He was also selected as the coach for the NBA All-Star Game for Boston four times between 1984 and 1987.
The University of San Francisco product coached the Celtics for a total of five seasons beginning in 1983-84 and amassed a 308-102 regular-season record and a 65-37 playoff record, good for .751 and .637 winning percentages, respectively.
Jones stayed on with the team in an advisory role for one more season before joining the Seattle SuperSonics as an assistant coach in the 1989-90 NBA season.
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It was the same date as the elevation of assistant coach Jimmy Rodgers to head coach after Jones’ departure. Rodgers had joined the organization along with then-head coach Bill Fitch, remaining with Jones after Fitch’s departure. Rodgers had an unremarkable tenure as coach in terms of success with the team in decline and Larry Bird in particular missing all but a handful of games in Rodgers’ first season.
After falling in the 1990 Eastern Conference Playoffs first round to the New York Knicks in five games, Rodgers’ tenure as head coach with the team came to an end. He recorded a 94-70 regular-season record and a 2-6 playoff record for a .573 and .250 respective winning percentage.
It is the date of the 1967 NBA draft, in which Boston took two players of note. The first is shooting guard Rick Weitzman, taken with the 110th overall pick out of Northeastern (there were many more rounds to the draft in that era), Weitzman played one season for the Celtics, winning a championship at the end of the 1967-68 season. Over 25 games with the team, the former Husky logged 1.3 points, 0.4 rebounds, and 0.3 assists per game with the team.
Boston also selected point guard Mal Graham out of New York University with the 11th overall pick. The White Plains native won two championships with the Celtics, averaging 4.7 points, 1.7 boards, and 1.1 assists per game over those two seasons.
This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Celtics history, KC Jones resigns, Jimmy Rodgers hired; 1967 NBA Draft