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BREAKING: Chris Ford, the first player to hit a 3-pointer in the NBA and a three-time league champion with the Boston Celtics, has died at 74 after 10 seasons as a player and another decade as head coach
- Former NBA player and coach Chris Ford dies at 74
- Ford died in his native New Jersey of heart failure, according to reports
- Won three tokens with Boston: one as a player and two as an assistant coach
- Ford served as the head coach of Boston, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and the LA Clippers.
- He is credited with hitting the first three-pointer in NBA history in 1979.
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Chris Ford, the man credited with making the first NBA three-pointer in league history, has died at age 74. The official cause of death is heart failure, according to the National Sportswriters Hall of Fame inductee. dick weiss.
“Chris was loved by his family, friends and teammates,” his family said in a statement. He had a great love for his family, the city of Boston, the fans and the entire Celtics family.
“He always showed humility and respect for all those who were lucky enough to be a part of his life.”
Ford’s decorated career included three titles with the Boston Celtics, one as a player and two as an assistant coach with KC Jones. He also served as a head coach for 10 NBA seasons.
Chris Ford, the man credited with making the first NBA three-pointer in league history, has died at age 74. The New Jersey native played 10 seasons in the NBA and coached for another decade.
Assistant coach Chris Ford celebrates during a parade after winning the championship against the Houston Rockets circa 1986 at the Boston Garden.
The family disclosed the death through the Celtics on Wednesday. No official cause was given, but the statement said Ford passed away on Tuesday. The Press of Atlantic City reported that he died in Philadelphia after suffering a heart attack earlier in the month.
‘Chris was loved by his family, friends and teammates. He had a great love for his family, the city of Boston, the fans and the entire Celtics family,” the family’s statement said. “He always showed humility and respect for all those who were lucky enough to be a part of his life.”
Ford was voted team MVP in his first season with Boston. He retired after the 1981-82 season and was an assistant coach for the Celtics for seven seasons from 1983 to 1990, helping coach former teammates Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish to two titles in 1984 and 1986 while he served under coach KC Jones.
He is one of four former Celtics to have won championships as a player and coach, joining Bill Russell, Tom Heinsohn and Jones who have all passed away in the past three years.
Ford (left) was voted team MVP in his first season with Boston. He retired after the 1981-82 season and was an assistant coach for the Celtics for seven seasons, from 1983 to 1990, helping coach former teammates Larry Bird (right), Kevin McHale and Robert Parish to two titles in 1984 and 1986 while serving as a coach. kc jones
“As a player and coach, Chris Ford’s career spanned more than a decade of Celtics basketball, and he left his mark every step of the way,” the Celtics said in a statement. ‘Doc’, as his teammates affectionately called him, was a fundamentally versatile point guard. … The Boston Celtics send their deepest condolences to the Ford family and their many friends.”
Born in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Ford was drafted from Villanova by the Detroit Pistons in 1972. He spent six seasons there before being traded to the Celtics. He averaged 15.6 points and a career-high 4.7 assists per game in his first season in Boston in 1978-79. He opened the following season on October 12, 1979, by making the first 3-pointer in NBA history in the first quarter of Boston’s victory over the Houston Rockets.
Ford succeeded Jimmy Rodgers as Celtics coach and led the team for five seasons from 1990-91 to 1994-95.
He compiled a 222-188 record with four playoff appearances as Boston’s head coach, but his teams never advanced past the conference finals.
Ford also had a pair of two-year stints as head coach with the Milwaukee Bucks (1996-98) and Los Angeles Clippers (1998-2000). He began the 2003-04 season as an assistant for the Philadelphia 76ers and managed the last 30 games of that season after Randy Ayers was fired.