![]() |
![]() Ford at UNC in 1977 | |||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Born | Rocky Mount, North Carolina, U.S. | February 9, 1956||||||||||||||
Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||
Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) | ||||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||||
High school | Rocky Mount (Rocky Mount, North Carolina) | ||||||||||||||
College | North Carolina (1974–1978) | ||||||||||||||
NBA draft | 1978: 1st round, 2nd overall pick | ||||||||||||||
Selected by the Kansas City Kings | |||||||||||||||
Playing career | 1978–1985 | ||||||||||||||
Position | Point guard | ||||||||||||||
Number | 1, 12 | ||||||||||||||
Coaching career | 1988–2011 | ||||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||||
As player: | |||||||||||||||
1978–1982 | Kansas City Kings | ||||||||||||||
1982 | New Jersey Nets | ||||||||||||||
1982–1983 | Milwaukee Bucks | ||||||||||||||
1983–1985 | Houston Rockets | ||||||||||||||
As coach: | |||||||||||||||
1988–2000 | North Carolina (assistant) | ||||||||||||||
2004–2005 | Detroit Pistons (assistant) | ||||||||||||||
2005–2007 | New York Knicks (assistant) | ||||||||||||||
2007–2011 | Charlotte Bobcats (assistant) | ||||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Career NBA statistics | |||||||||||||||
Points | 5,594 (11.6 ppg) | ||||||||||||||
Rebounds | 854 (1.8 rpg) | ||||||||||||||
Assists | 3,083 (6.4 apg) | ||||||||||||||
Stats at NBA.com | |||||||||||||||
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||||||||||||||
College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2012 | |||||||||||||||
Medals
|
Phil Jackson Ford Jr. (born February 9, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He graduated from Rocky Mount Senior High School in 1974, and had an All-American college career with the North Carolina Tar Heels.
Ford was the first freshman under head basketball coach Dean Smith to start in his first collegiate basketball game. [1] During the season, he averaged 16.4 points and 5.2 assists per game – both of which were UNC freshman records that would stand for more than 20 years. [2] Ford led UNC to a second-place finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season standings, [3] and then to a championship win over NC State in the 1975 ACC tournament. This win broke N.C. State's two-year winning streak as ACC champions. Ford averaged 26 points in the tournament [4] and was named tournament MVP – the first freshman in ACC history to achieve that honor.
In his sophomore season, Ford averaged 18.6 points and 7.0 assists per game. [2] His assists average established a UNC single-season record until Ed Cota averaged 7.4 assists during the 1997–98 season. [5] Ford led UNC to a first-place finish during the ACC regular season [6] and was a first team All-ACC selection, an honor he would also receive in his junior and senior seasons. He also was a consensus second team All-American.
In his junior season, Ford averaged 18.7 points and 6.6 assists per game [2] while once again leading the Tar Heels to a first-place ACC regular season finish. [7] In the 1977 ACC tournament, Ford scored 26 points in the championship game against the Virginia [8] to propel UNC to another conference title. In the 1977 NCAA Division I basketball tournament, Ford helped advance the Tar Heels into the Final Four and all the way to the NCAA Championship Game, despite hyperextending his shooting elbow in the regional semifinal game against Notre Dame. [9] Ford was named a consensus first team All-American at the end of the season.
In his senior season, Ford averaged 20.8 points and 5.7 assists per game, [2] and scored a career-high 34 points in his final home game – a victory against Duke, which clinched another ACC first-place finish for the Tar Heels. [10] At the end of the season, Ford repeated as a consensus first-team All-American and was recognized as the National Player of the Year when he won the USBWA, NABC and Sporting News Player of the Year awards,[ citation needed ] as well as the John R. Wooden Award.
Ford was the second overall pick in the first round of the NBA draft. While being coached by Cotton Fitzsimmons and forming a dynamic backcourt duo with Otis Birdsong which was noticed by many across the league, [11] [12] Ford was named NBA Rookie of the Year with the Kansas City Kings in 1979. During that season, on February 21, 1979, Ford recorded a career best 22 assists, while also scoring 26 points, grabbing 5 rebounds, and recording 5 steals, in a 133-117 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. [13] During the 1980-81 NBA season, Ford scored a career high 38 points in a 113-107 win over the Houston Rockets on January 23, 1981. [14] Just weeks later, Ford was forced to undergo surgery for a season ending eye injury, after which the Kings unexpectedly made it to the Western Conference Finals despite having a regular season record of 40-42. [15] After the season, Ford struggled to return to his previous level of play, [16] and was traded to the Nets, then traded to the Bucks, before being released and playing out his career on the Rockets. [17]
In 482 NBA games, Ford scored 5,594 points, an 11.6 average, and had 3,083 assists, an average of 6.4 per game. He retired from the NBA in 1985.
After his sophomore season, Ford was the starting point guard for the 1976 U.S. Olympic team, coached by Dean Smith, which won the gold medal. In six Olympic games, Ford totaled 54 assists for a 9.0 assists per game average. [18]
Ford was known as an excellent ballhandler and penetrator who possessed a very accurate pull-up jump shot. He was also very adept at making free throws, especially in the final minutes of close games. His ballhandling and free-throw shooting skill allowed him to be at his best when running Carolina's Four Corners offense, an offensive strategy that some college teams used to either stall or score only when taking extremely safe shots. However, when Ford was dribbling the ball in the center of the four corners alignment, he often found teammates for quick, easy baskets or drew fouls on the other team. Coach Smith often employed this offense when UNC needed to protect a lead in the final minutes of a game, and Ford's abilities all but ensured that such a lead would be maintained. Ford also mastered the 360-degree spinning layup. [19]
Ford is widely considered to be among the greatest college point guards of all time, and some contend he is still the greatest point guard ever to play in the ACC. He finished his career at Carolina as the all-time leading scorer in school history, with 2,290 points. [2] He also set school and ACC career records for total assists, with 753 (a mark since broken by several other players). [20] On December 18, 2008, Tyler Hansbrough surpassed Ford's career scoring total. He also finished his career as the only player in Atlantic Coast Conference history to score over 2,000 points and register at least 600 assists (a record now shared with Travis Best of Georgia Tech and Greivis Vásquez of Maryland). Ford was especially productive in ACC Tournament play, as he averaged 23.6 points per game in 8 career tournament contests. [21]
In both his Junior and Senior years, Ford won the ACC Athlete of the Year award, making him one of just a few ACC athletes ever to win the award twice.
Ford was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in May 1991. In 2002, Ford was named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men's basketball team honoring the fifty best players in ACC history.
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 |
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1978–79 | Kansas City | 79 | — | 34.5 | .465 | — | .813 | 2.3 | 8.6 | 2.2 | .1 | 15.9 |
1979–80 | Kansas City | 82 | — | 32.0 | .462 | .174 | .818 | 2.1 | 7.4 | 1.7 | .0 | 16.2 |
1980–81 | Kansas City | 66 | — | 34.7 | .478 | .306 | .831 | 1.9 | 8.8 | 1.5 | .1 | 17.5 |
1981–82 | Kansas City | 72 | 65 | 27.1 | .439 | .219 | .819 | 1.5 | 6.3 | .9 | .0 | 9.9 |
1982–83 | New Jersey | 7 | 7 | 23.3 | .571 | .000 | .700 | 1.0 | 5.4 | .9 | .0 | 6.7 |
1982–83 | Milwaukee | 70 | 56 | 20.7 | .471 | .125 | .796 | 1.4 | 3.6 | .7 | .0 | 6.8 |
1983–84 | Houston | 81 | 55 | 24.9 | .502 | .133 | .838 | 1.7 | 5.1 | .7 | .1 | 7.1 |
1984–85 | Houston | 25 | 1 | 11.6 | .298 | .000 | .889 | 1.1 | 2.4 | .2 | .0 | 1.8 |
Career | 482 | 184 | 28.0 | .467 | .210 | .820 | 1.8 | 6.4 | 1.2 | .1 | 11.6 |
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1979 | Kansas City | 8 | — | 28.6 | .263 | — | .563 | 2.4 | 5.8 | 2.4 | .0 | 7.8 |
1980 | Kansas City | 3 | — | 36.7 | .465 | .750 | .818 | 2.0 | 8.7 | 1.7 | .0 | 17.3 |
1981 | Kansas City | 5 | — | 31.6 | .429 | .000 | .692 | 1.6 | 5.8 | 1.0 | .0 | 7.8 |
1983 | Milwaukee | 2 | — | 2.5 | .000 | — | 1.000 | .0 | .5 | .0 | .0 | 3.0 |
Career | 15 | — | 27.7 | .365 | .600 | .717 | 1.7 | 5.7 | 1.5 | .0 | 9.1 |
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1974–75 | North Carolina | 31 | — | — | .516 | — | .783 | 2.7 | 5.2 | — | — | 16.4 |
1975–76 | North Carolina | 29 | — | — | .532 | — | .780 | 1.8 | 7.0 | 1.8 | .0 | 18.6 |
1976–77 | North Carolina | 33 | — | — | .534 | — | .853 | 1.9 | 6.6 | 1.7 | .0 | 18.7 |
1977–78 | North Carolina | 30 | — | — | .527 | — | .810 | 2.1 | 5.7 | 1.8 | .1 | 20.8 |
Career | 123 | — | — | .527 | — | .808 | 2.1 | 6.1 | 1.8 | .1 | 18.6 |
In 1988, he returned to North Carolina as an assistant coach, and helped lead the Tar Heels to the 1993 national title. After Smith retired in 1997, Ford became the top assistant to his successor, Bill Guthridge. Ford left the school following UNC's 1999–2000 season in which they reached the Final Four, along with the rest of Guthridge's staff, when Matt Doherty took over as head coach with his own coaching staff. [22]
Ford currently works for the Educational Foundation, the fund-raising arm of the University of North Carolina athletic department. He also briefly served as color commentator on UNC basketball broadcasts. [23]
Ford served as an assistant coach to Larry Brown for the Detroit Pistons (2004–2005). After a brief stint as an assistant coach to Isiah Thomas for the New York Knicks (2005–2007), Ford was retained in the same position by the Charlotte Bobcats' new head coach Larry Brown from June 2008 to 2010. [24]
Andrew Tyler Hansbrough is an American former professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for seven seasons, as well as internationally.
Roy Allen Williams is an American retired college basketball coach who served as the men's head coach for the North Carolina Tar Heels for 18 seasons and the Kansas Jayhawks for 15 seasons. He was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007. Williams is widely regarded as one of the best collegiate basketball coaches of all time.
Matthew Francis Doherty is an American former college basketball coach best known for his time as head coach of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team. Prior to accepting the head coaching position at UNC, he spent one season as head coach of the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball program.
Hubert Ira Davis Jr. is an American college basketball coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels men's team. Before his coaching career, Davis played for North Carolina from 1988–1992 and in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors, Dallas Mavericks, Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons, and New Jersey Nets from 1992 to 2004. He holds the franchise single-season and career three-point field goal shooting percentage records for both the Knicks and the Mavericks. He is the nephew of Walter Davis, another former Tar Heel and NBA player.
Leonard Robert Rosenbluth was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA), but he is remembered, first and foremost, for his college basketball player days. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels, where he was Helms Foundation Player of the Year (1957), consensus first-team All-American (1957), second-team All-American – AP, UPI, INS (1956), third-team All-American – NEA, Collier's (1956), ACC Player of the Year (1957), and 3× first-team All-ACC (1955–1957).
Arthur Bruce Heyman was an American professional basketball player. Playing for Duke University in college, in 1963 he was USBWA Player of the Year, AP Player of the Year, UPI Player of the Year, Sporting News Player of the Year, Helms Foundation College Player of the Year, a consensus first-team All-American, ACC Player of the Year, and ACC Athlete of the Year. That year he was the first overall pick in the first round of the 1963 NBA draft. He went on to have a 310-game professional career in the NBA and ABA.
The North Carolina Tar Heels Men's basketball program is a college basketball team of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels have won six NCAA championships in addition to a 1924 Helms Athletic Foundation title (retroactive). North Carolina has won a record 133 NCAA tournament matchups while advancing to 31 Sweet Sixteen berths, a record 21 Final Fours, and 12 title games. It is the only school to have an active streak of reaching the National Championship game for nine straight decades and at least two Final Fours for six straight decades, all while averaging more wins per season played (20.7) than any other program in college basketball. In 2012, ESPN ranked North Carolina No. 1 on its list of the 50 most successful programs of the past fifty years.
The 2008–09 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The head coach was Roy Williams. The team played its home games in the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and was a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The team won the 2009 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, the fifth NCAA national title in school history. Considered one of the greatest teams in college basketball history, the Tar Heels won their six NCAA tournament games by double digits, and by an average of 19.8 points per game. They were ranked as the 30th best team in college basketball history by Bleacher Report in 2012.
The 1961–62 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team was Dean Smith's first as the head coach at North Carolina. The 1961–62 team finished with an 8–9 overall record, despite a young and inexperienced roster. They tied for fourth in the Atlantic Coast Conference with a 7–7 record. Their season ended with a first round loss in the ACC Tournament to South Carolina. This was Dean Smith's only losing season as a head coach at North Carolina.
The 2009–10 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Their head coach was Roy Williams. The team played its home games in the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and is a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They were the defending National Champions. This season represented the 100th season of basketball in the school's history.
Harrison Bryce Jordan Barnes is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels before being selected by the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the 2012 NBA draft with the seventh overall pick. Barnes won an NBA championship with the Warriors in 2015.
Kendall Dewan Marshall is an American basketball coach and former professional player. He was born in Dumfries, Virginia, and attended Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels and was drafted by the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 2012 NBA draft with the 13th overall pick.
Marcus Taylor Paige is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He played college basketball for the University of North Carolina, where he helped lead the Tar Heels to the 2016 NCAA championship game, and now serves in a support staff role at his alma mater. In addition to being a citizen of the United States, Paige also has Serbian citizenship.
Samuel Peterson "P. J." Hairston Jr. is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of North Carolina. He finished his sophomore season in 2013 and was eligible for the 2014 NBA draft. He was selected with the 26th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft by the Miami Heat, and was later traded to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Shabazz Napier.
Jonathan Brice Johnson is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for North Carolina, graduating in 2016. He was selected in the first round by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2016 NBA draft.
Joel DeWayne Berry II is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels and led the team to the 2017 national championship. Berry played professionally for two seasons in the NBA G League and one season in Turkey before his retirement in 2021.
The 1982–83 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team represented University of North Carolina in the 1982–83 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They finished the season 28–8 overall, tied for the ACC regular season title with a 12–2 record and made it to the Elite Eight of the 1983 NCAA Tournament. They were coached by Dean Smith in his twenty-second season as head coach of the Tar Heels. They played their home games at the Carmichael Auditorium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Armando Linwood Bacot Jr. is an American professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). He holds the program records for double-doubles and career rebounds. Over his 5-year career, Bacot played in a UNC-record 171 games.
Caleb Khristopher Love is an American college basketball player for the Arizona Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference. He spent his first three seasons at North Carolina, where he was a starter and key piece of the team's 2022 Final Four run.
Robert Davis Jr. is an American college basketball player for the North Carolina Tar Heels of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).