Seldom Does K.C. Jones Raise His Voice, but He Helped Celtics Raise Their Game

BOSTON —  Mild-mannered K.C. Jones got mad, and within two minutes he was slapped with two technical fouls. His night’s work done, he left with 9:10 left in the second quarter.

Their coach’s ejection roused the Boston Celtics. In the next six minutes, the Celtics outscored the New York Knicks, 21-4, turned a 43-32 deficit into a 53-47 lead and rolled to a 115-108 victory.

“They just got pumped up, man. They didn’t need a coach,” New York center Ken Bannister said.

Others also have overlooked Jones’ impact on a team of outstanding players. His calm demeanor doesn’t attract attention.

But after New Jersey lost to the Celtics in a later game, Nets’ Coach Dave Wohl said, “It’s as hard to coach a great team as it is coaching a poor team.”

“The hard thing about coaching a great team is not overcoaching. K.C. knows when to call a timeout and when to call a play or let the guys play,” Wohl said.

Celtics’ center Bill Walton likens Jones to John Wooden, Walton’s coach at UCLA and a member of basketball’s Hall of Fame.

“They’re similar in their low-key approach from the fans’ aspect of looking at the team,” Walton said. “Coach Wooden had this image that he just sat there. So much of the work had been done beforehand.

“I think he (Jones) is the coach of the year . . . because we’ve played the best basketball,” Walton said. “He’s the coach of our team. Who else can you give the credit to?”

This year, Jones became the first coach in NBA history to have four 60-victory seasons and the first to win 60 with more than one club.

In 1974-75, he led Washington to a 60-22 record and the past two seasons he piloted the Celtics to marks of 62-20 and 63-19. This season, they have surpassed those three records.

He is seeking his second NBA championship in three years as the Celtics’ coach after playing for Boston teams that won eight crowns in his nine seasons as a defensive-oriented guard. Before that, he played on University of San Francisco teams that won NCAA titles in 1955 and 1956, and also won a gold medal with the U.S. Olympic team in 1956.

This season, with a deeper club than the one that lost to the Lakers in the NBA final last season, Jones is trying to regain the league crown.

“K.C.’s been a model of consistency in terms of dealing with people,” assistant coach Jimmy Rodgers said. “Probably the greatest change he’s made is dealing with a much deeper team.

“It’s a tough job to keep the minutes spread around properly and keep the right combinations on the floor with the greater numbers” of talented players.

One player who hasn’t been on the floor much is first-round draft choice Sam Vincent, a promising rookie guard from Michigan State. But veteran guard Dennis Johnson thinks Jones has handled Vincent well.

“K.C. spent five years here before starting,” Johnson said. “He relates that to Sam, and Sam is a better player for it.”

Said Jones: “The biggest thing is honesty between the coach and the players.”

Jones also has had to find a way to keep the Celtics hustling and not overconfident after winning streaks of 14, 13, 9, 8 and 8 games.

“The difference between this year and last year is that K.C. is being more demanding,” center Robert Parish said. “He is making sure that we don’t coast or take games for granted. He’s making sure that everybody stays hungry. He’s not being as subtle this year and I think we need that. When we’re on a roll we can get content.”

Jones makes it sound easy. “They’re the guys performing. They need a director,” he said. “This year we were dragging. We weren’t quite there and they needed someone to say, ‘Hey, let’s get together.’ ”

Early in the season, Jones tried to find the best ways to use two veteran newcomers, Walton and guard Jerry Sichting. They have worked themselves into the system and have become part of an oppressive defense.

“That team defense is designed by him (Jones) and it’s one of the most effective in the NBA,” Washington Coach Kevin Loughery said.

“We respect his knowledge of the game,” said Johnson. The players also appreciate his treating them with respect.

“We understand K.C.,” Johnson said. “We understand he’s not going to get up and holler and embarrass us if we happen to make a turnover. A lot of coaches will call you stupid.

“All I can say about him is he has the respect of all the players.”