Ronald "Popeye" Jones (2007) - Hall of Fame - Murray State University Athletics

Ronald "Popeye" Jones

Induction:
2007

Ronald “Popeye” Jones – Men’s Basketball, 1988-1992

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Arrived at Murray State from Dresden, Tenn.
Three-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection and two-time OVC Player of the Year in 1990 and 1991.
Named OVC Athlete of the Year in 1991 and 1992.
Two-time All-America selection in 1991 and 1992.
Inducted into the MSU Hall of Fame in 2007
His jersey No. 54 is retired at MSU and it hangs in the rafters of the CFSB Center.
Selected by the Houston Rockets in the second round as the 41st overall pick in the 1992 National Basketball Association (NBA) draft.
Never played for the Rockets and instead started his professional career in Milan, Italy and played there for one season (1992-93).
In 1993-1994, he began what would be an 11- year career in the NBA.
Played three seasons with the Dallas Mavericks (1993-96), two seasons with the Toronto Raptors (1996-1998).
Played one season each with the Boston Celtics (1998-99) and Denver Nuggets (1999-00).
Finished his career playing two seasons with the Washington Wizards (2000-02) and one in Dallas (2003-03) and with the Golden State Warriors (2003-04).
His career NBA numbers include playing in 535 games (304 starts), 3,726 points (6.9ppg), 3,981 rebounds (7.4 rpg), .447 percent from the field and .751 from the free throw line. He had 696 assists and 300 steals.
One of his best seasons was his second year in the NBA (1994-95) with Dallas when he averaged 10.4 rebounds per game (844 total) and 10.3 points per game (825 total). He started in all 80 games he played that season in Dallas. He ranked eighth in the league in total rebounds and 10th in rebounds per game.
Combining his collegiate career at Murray State and what he accomplished in the NBA, Popeye played in a total of 658 games with 6,441 points and 5,355 rebounds.
As of 2021, Jones was an assistant coach with the Denver Nuggets.
Here is his NBA coaching career: New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets (2010-13, Coach Avery Johnson & P.J. Carlesimo), Indiana Pacers (2013-2020, Coach Frank Vogel), Philadelphia 76ers (2020-21, Coach Doc Rivers), Denver Nuggets (2021-22, Coach Michael Malone).