Ozell Jones

Ozell "Hoppy" Jones III was an American professional basketball player. He was listed at 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) and weighed 235 pounds (107 kg). Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, his family soon moved to Compton, California, and later to Long Beach, California, so that he could play high school basketball at Long Beach Polytechnic. Jones first played college basketball with the Wichita State University (1979–1981) and helped the "Shockers" reach the Elite 8 in his second year. He later transferred to Cal State Fullerton to play for the "Titans" in 1982–1984. He entered the 1984 NBA draft and was chosen in the fourth round by the San Antonio Spurs. On 24 October 1985, he was waived by the Spurs. He later signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Clippers on March 31, 1986, but played in only three games. After his time in the NBA, he played overseas in Italy (1986–1987) then spent the rest of his professional career playing in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) for the Cincinnati Slammers (1986–1987), Quad City Thunder (1987–1988), Tulsa Fast Breakers (1989–1990), Tri-City Chinook (1993–1994) and Oklahoma City Cavalry (1994–1995). Jones was selected to the All-CBA Second Team and All-Defensive Team in 1990. He also participated in the USBL with two spells for the Miami Tropics in 1987 and 1988. After retiring, he operated a big and tall men's clothing store in Lancaster, California.