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Wallace Jones

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For the musician, see Wallace Jones (musician).

Wallace Jones
Personal information
Born(1926-07-14)July 14, 1926
Harlan, Kentucky, U.S.
DiedJuly 27, 2014(2014-07-27) (aged 88)
Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High schoolHarlan (Harlan, Kentucky)
CollegeKentucky (1945–1949)
BAA draft1949: 1st round, 8th overall pick
Selected by the Washington Capitols
Playing career1949–1952
PositionPower forward
Number17
Career history
1949–1952Indianapolis Olympians
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points1,428 (10.2 ppg)
Rebounds408 (5.1 rpg)
Assists429 (3.1 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1948 London Team competition

Wallace Clayton "Wah Wah" Jones (July 14, 1926 – July 27, 2014) was an American professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1949 to 1952 with the Indianapolis Olympians.

Biography

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Jones was born in Harlan, Kentucky. He attended Harlan High School, where he set a national scoring record in basketball and led his school to a state championship. He was all-state in football, basketball and baseball.[1]

Jones attended the University of Kentucky, where he continued to play varsity football, basketball and baseball. He was twice All-SEC in football. In basketball, he was a three time All-American and four time All-SEC. He led the Wildcats to two NCAA Championships, in 1948 and 1949. Jones was a member of the 1948 Olympic Gold medal-winning team with Adolph Rupp's "Fabulous Five" and the Phillips 66ers. During his four years at Kentucky, the basketball team had a combined record of 130–10 and won the SEC championship every year.[1][2]

He holds the unique distinction of being an All-American under both legends, Adolph Rupp (basketball) and Bear Bryant (football) when both coached at Kentucky. He is the only player to have his number retired in both football and basketball at Kentucky.[3] At the University of Kentucky, Jones was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity.[4] Jones was selected in the seventh round of the 1949 NFL draft by the Chicago Bears, but did not play in the league.[5]

A jersey honoring Jones hangs in Rupp Arena.

In 1953, Jones was elected the sheriff of Fayette County, Kentucky.[6] In 1956, Jones was the Republican nominee for Kentucky's 6th congressional district seat in the United States House of Representatives. Though Dwight Eisenhower, heading the Republican ticket, carried the state, Jones lost the election to Democrat John C. Watts.[6]

In 1978, Jones started a charter bus company called "Blue Grass Tours" that is contracted to the UK Athletics department. Blue Grass Tours is currently run by his son Wallace (Wah) Jones and grandson Corey Jones, and manages a fleet of coach busses for the use of the athletic teams.[7]

"Wah Wah"

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Known as Wallace in his early years, Jones acquired the nickname, "Wah Wah", when his younger sister Jackie, just learning to talk, could not pronounce his name.[7]

Death

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Jones died in Lexington on July 27, 2014, at the age of 88.[7]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

NBA

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Source[8]

Regular season

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Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1949–50 Indianapolis 60 – .374 .751 – 3.2 12.5
1950–51 Indianapolis 22 – .392 .792 5.7 3.9 11.2
1951–52 Indianapolis 58 22.8 .313 .750 4.9 2.6 7.4
Career 140 22.8 .355 .757 5.1 3.1 10.2

Playoffs

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Year Team GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
1950 Indianapolis 5 .301 .853 4.4 14.6
1952 Indianapolis 1 8.0 .333 – .0 .0 2.0
Career 6 8.0 .303 .853 .0 3.7 12.5

References

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  1. ^ a b "'Wah Wah' Jones Passes Away". University of Kentucky. Retrieved July 31, 2014.
  2. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Wallace Jones Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  3. ^ Martin, Douglas (July 28, 2014), "Wah Wah Jones, Versatile Kentucky Athlete, Dies at 88", The New York Times
  4. ^ "All-Time Kentucky Team (Starting PG): #12 Ralph Beard". straitpinkie.com. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
  5. ^ "1949 Chicago Bears". databaseFootball.com. Archived from the original on September 5, 2007. Retrieved July 16, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ^ a b Story, Mark, Farmer's political rise recalls another former Cat's Lexington Herald-Leader. September 5, 2010.
  7. ^ a b c Legendary UK basketball and football star Wah Wah Jones dies Lexington Herald-Leader. July 27, 2014.
  8. ^ "Wah Wah Jones". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
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