| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | (1926-07-14)July 14, 1926 Harlan, Kentucky, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Died | July 27, 2014(2014-07-27) (aged 88) Lexington, Kentucky, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 225 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Harlan (Harlan, Kentucky) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Kentucky (1945–1949) | ||||||||||||||
| BAA draft | 1949: 1st round, 8th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Drafted by | Washington Capitols | ||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1949–1952 | ||||||||||||||
| Position | Power forward | ||||||||||||||
| Number | 17 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| 1949–1952 | Indianapolis Olympians | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
| Career NBA statistics | |||||||||||||||
| Points | 1,428 (10.2 ppg) | ||||||||||||||
| Rebounds | 408 (5.1 rpg) | ||||||||||||||
| Assists | 429 (3.1 apg) | ||||||||||||||
Stats at NBA.com  | |||||||||||||||
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |||||||||||||||
Medals
| |||||||||||||||
Wallace Clayton "Wah Wah" Jones (July 14, 1926 – July 27, 2014) was an American professionalbasketball player. He played in theNational Basketball Association (NBA) from 1949 to 1952 with theIndianapolis Olympians.
Jones was born inHarlan, Kentucky. He attendedHarlan 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 theUniversity 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 timeAll-American and four time All-SEC. He led the Wildcats to two NCAA Championships, in1948 and1949. Jones was a member of the1948 Olympic Gold medal-winning team with Adolph Rupp's "Fabulous Five" and thePhillips 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) andBear 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 thePhi Delta Theta fraternity.[4] Jones was selected in the seventh round of the1949 NFL draft by theChicago Bears, but did not play in the league.[5]
In 1953, Jones was elected thesheriff ofFayette County, Kentucky.[6] In 1956, Jones was the Republican nominee forKentucky's 6th congressional district seat in theUnited States House of Representatives. ThoughDwight Eisenhower, heading the Republican ticket, carried the state, Jones lost the election to DemocratJohn C. Watts.[6]
In 1978, Jones started a charter bus company called "Blue Grass Tours" that is contracted to theUK Athletics department. Blue Grass Tours is currently run by his son Wallace (Wah) Jones and grandson Corey Jones, and manages a fleet ofcoach busses for the use of the athletic teams.[7]
Known as Wallace in his early years, Jones acquired thenickname, "Wah Wah", when his younger sister Jackie, just learning to talk, could not pronounce his name.[7]
Jones died in Lexington on July 27, 2014, at the age of 88.[7]
| 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 |
Source[8]
| 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 | |
| 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 | |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis | 1950–51 | 12 | 7 | 5 | .583 | 4th inWestern | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | Lost indivision semifinals |
| Career | 12 | 7 | 5 | .583 | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | |||
