 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1956-08-28)August 28, 1956 (age 69) Romulus, Michigan, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Romulus (Romulus, Michigan) |
| College | Detroit Mercy (1974–1978) |
| NBA draft | 1978: 2nd round, 29th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Detroit Pistons |
| Playing career | 1978–1997 |
| Position | Shooting guard /small forward |
| Number | 25, 34 |
| Career history | |
| 1978–1986 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1986–1989 | Indiana Pacers |
| 1989 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1990 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 1990–1991 | Tours Joué Basket |
| 1991 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1994 | Sioux Falls Skyforce |
| 1996–1997 | Toronto Raptors |
| Career highlights | |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 12,131 (13.6 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 2,492 (2.8 rpg) |
| Steals | 912 (1.0 spg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
John Eddie Long (born August 28, 1956) is an American former professionalbasketball player.
Long played high school basketball atRomulus High School, and signed to play forDick Vitale at theUniversity of Detroit. Long established himself quickly with a Detroit program that would produce an unprecedented run during his time with the Titans (1974–1978). Vitale added futureNBA players such asTerry Duerod,Terry Tyler andDennis Boyd and built a dominating independent program at the Jesuit university. Long played shooting guard for the team, averaging 23.3 ppg on a .525 shooting percentage as a senior.
UD advanced to the1977 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament in his junior year, defeatingMiddle Tennessee in the first round before losing toMichigan in the Sweet 16 86–81 to end a stellar season, finishing #12 in the polls.[1]
The team was left out of the NCAA in Longs's senior year, 1977–78, playing in the1978 NIT, despite a 25–4 record and a #18 ranking.[2][3][4] In four seasons at Detroit, Long scored 2,167 points, the first Titan to score more than 2000 points, and was inducted into the Detroit Mercy Titans Hall of Fame in 1993.[5]
After starring at theUniversity of Detroit, theshooting guard was selected by theDetroit Pistons in the second round of the1978 NBA draft. The move was largely influenced by Pistons Head CoachDick Vitale, who coached Long at UD before going to the Pistons in 1978. He played eight seasons for the Pistons, and averaged a career-high 21.9 points per game in1981–82. Long was the original backcourt partner to point guardIsiah Thomas beforeJoe Dumars was drafted. During his time with the Pistons, Long would also play alongside University of Detroit teammates Duerod, Boyd and Tyler. On December 13, 1983, Long scored 41 points, recorded eight assists, and grabbed six rebounds during a 186–184 triple overtime win over theDenver Nuggets.[6]
Long left Detroit to play for theIndiana Pacers in 1986, where he paired withReggie Miller, and then returned to the Pistons in the1988-89 Detroit Pistons season, helping the team win the NBA championship. He spent the next season with theAtlanta Hawks and then returned to Detroit in1990-91, played inFrance, theContinental Basketball Association, and even played with a touring team forMagic Johnson. Not done, Long signed with theToronto Raptors in 1996, played with the Raptors for one season, and then retired in 1997 with 12,131 career points. At the time, the 41-year-old Long was the second oldest player in theNBA behind Robert Parish, who was 43.
Two of John Long's nephews,Terry Mills andGrant Long, also played in the NBA. The nephews were teammates in Detroit during the 1996–1997 season. All three men played two seasons or more for the Detroit Pistons.[7] Long has worked as a radio analyst for the Pistons.
Long was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.[8]
| 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 |
| † | Won anNBA championship |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978–79 | Detroit | 82 | – | 30.5 | .469 | – | .826 | 3.2 | 1.5 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 16.1 |
| 1979–80 | Detroit | 69 | – | 34.3 | .505 | .083 | .825 | 4.9 | 3.0 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 19.4 |
| 1980–81 | Detroit | 59 | – | 29.7 | .461 | .182 | .870 | 3.3 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 17.7 |
| 1981–82 | Detroit | 69 | 66 | 32.0 | .492 | .133 | .865 | 3.7 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 21.9 |
| 1982–83 | Detroit | 70 | 30 | 21.2 | .451 | .286 | .760 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 10.5 |
| 1983–84 | Detroit | 82 | 82 | 30.7 | .472 | .200 | .884 | 3.5 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 16.3 |
| 1984–85 | Detroit | 66 | 55 | 27.6 | .487 | .333 | .862 | 2.9 | 2.0 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 14.7 |
| 1985–86 | Detroit | 62 | 30 | 19.0 | .482 | .188 | .856 | 1.6 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 10.0 |
| 1986–87 | Indiana | 80 | 68 | 28.3 | .419 | .284 | .890 | 2.7 | 3.2 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 15.2 |
| 1987–88 | Indiana | 81 | 81 | 25.0 | .474 | .442 | .907 | 2.8 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 12.8 |
| 1988–89 | Indiana | 44 | 1 | 17.4 | .401 | .400 | .937 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 7.3 |
| 1988–89† | Detroit | 24 | 0 | 6.3 | .475 | – | .846 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 2.0 |
| 1989–90 | Atlanta | 48 | 19 | 21.5 | .453 | .345 | .836 | 1.7 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 8.4 |
| 1990–91 | Detroit | 25 | 0 | 10.2 | .412 | .333 | .960 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 3.8 |
| 1996–97 | Toronto | 32 | 0 | 11.6 | .393 | .353 | .893 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 4.0 |
| Career | 893 | 432 | 25.4 | .467 | .322 | .862 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 13.6 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Detroit | 5 | – | 29.8 | .364 | .000 | 1.000 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 1.4 | 0.0 | 11.0 |
| 1985 | Detroit | 9 | 9 | 28.3 | .457 | .250 | 1.000 | 1.9 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 0.2 | 12.4 |
| 1986 | Detroit | 1 | 0 | 13.0 | .400 | – | 1.000 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 7.0 |
| 1987 | Indiana | 4 | 4 | 27.3 | .308 | .167 | .846 | 1.5 | 2.3 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 11.0 |
| 1989† | Detroit | 4 | 0 | 2.0 | 1.000 | – | 1.000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.3 |
| Career | 23 | 13 | 23.2 | .399 | .182 | .959 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 9.7 | |
