Jim Ard

Jimmie Lee Ard (born September 19, 1948) is an American retired professional basketball player.

Jim Ard
Personal information
Born (1948-09-09) September 9, 1948
Seattle, Washington
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High schoolThornton Township (Harvey, Illinois)
CollegeCincinnati (1967–1970)
NBA draft1970 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall
Selected by the Seattle SuperSonics
Playing career1970–1978
PositionPower forward / Center
Number12, 11, 33, 34
Career history
1970–1973New York Nets
1973–1974Memphis Tams
1974–1977Boston Celtics
1977–1978Chicago Bulls
Career highlights and awards
Career statistics
Points1,909 (4.4 ppg)
Rebounds1,832 (4.3 rpg)
Assists278 (0.6 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Early life

Jim Ard was the son of James and Aline Ard.[1] Jim attended Thornton Township High School in Harvey, Illinois.[2] In his senior season of 1965–66, he was all-state and all-tournament in leading Thornton to the state title.[3]

He was heavily recruited and offered scholarships by over 100 schools. He narrowed his choices down to the University of Wisconsin and the University of Cincinnati,[1] which earlier in the decade had won back-to-back national championships. He selected Cincinnati.[4]

College career

A 6'8" forward/center, Ard attended Cincinnati and was a three-year starter for the Bearcats and was named first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference all three seasons. Ard was MVC MVP his senior season of 1969–70 when he averaged 19.2 points and 15.2 rebounds per game, and he was named Honorable Mention All-America by both the Associated Press and United Press International.[5] He tied the school record for most blocked shots in one game (10), which he shares with Kenyon Martin, UC teammate Rick Roberson, and Eric Hicks. He still ranks seventh all-time in career rebounds.[6]

In 1996, he was inducted into the University of Cincinnati Athletics Hall of Fame.[5]

Professional career

Ard was selected in the first round (sixth overall) of the 1970 NBA draft by the National Basketball Association's Seattle SuperSonics[7] as well as by the New York Nets[8] of the American Basketball Association. He signed with the Nets.

His three seasons with the Nets he served primarily as a backup forward/center, averaging about 14 minutes per game over those three seasons. In his rookie year of 1969–70, he averaged 5.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, followed in 1971–72 with 5.6 points and 5.2 rebounds. In 1972–73, his numbers slipped to 3.3 points and 3.5 rebounds.[7]

He had a bit of a resurgence in 1973–74 with the ABA's Memphis Tams, averaging a career-high 6.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.[7]

In the summer of 1974, he was signed by the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers, who released him a month later, but he then signed with the Boston Celtics. He is best known for his three years (1974–77) with the Celtics, for whom he provided rebounding and hustle as a backup to Dave Cowens, averaging about 13 minutes per game.[9]

Ard sank the go-ahead free throws in game five of the 1976 NBA Finals, a triple-overtime affair between the Celtics and the Phoenix Suns. These free throws have been described as "the two most historic free throws in both Celtics and NBA history."[10][11] The Celtics went on to win that series for the 1976 NBA championship and a ring for Jim Ard.[12]

In 1977–78, after one game with the Celtics, he was waived by the Celtics and, one month later, signed with the Chicago Bulls. After 14 games with the Bulls he was released, and his eight-year professional career came to an end. In his career, he totaled 1,909 points and 1,832 rebounds.[7]

Personal life

After basketball he became a technical sales rep, first for Honeywell Corporation in the Phoenix area and later as a company award-winning rep for Amdahl for a decade in California, Florida and New Jersey. He served as sales manager and in executive sales positions for several other companies including Storage Technology Corporation in California, Andataco, Sun Microsystems, Marimba, Global Message Systems Corporation, Xiotech (now known as X-IO) and Sterling Commerce.[13]

He currently resides in the Eugene, Oregon area.[13]

References
  1. Perry, M.; Lachey, N. (2004). Tales from Cincinnati Bearcats Basketball. Sports Pub. p. 92. ISBN 9781582617459. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  2. "Boudreau Trophy Room Rededicated | Thornton Township High School Alumni Legacy Fund". tthsalumnifund.wordpress.com. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  3. Donald, B.M.S.; S, D.B.M. (2009). Great Teams, Players, and Coaches: Stories About High School Basketball From the State of Illinois. AuthorHouse. p. 85. ISBN 9781467867092. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  4. "Celtic Nation:  THE unofficial home of the Boston Celtics". celtic-nation.com. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  5. "GoBEARCATS.COM Jim Ard Bio – University Of Cincinnati Official Athletic Site University Of Cincinnati". gobearcats.com. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  6. "Cincinnati 2010–11 Men's Basketball Media Supplement" (PDF). 15 November 2010. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  7. "Jim Ard NBA & ABA Stats | Basketball-Reference.com". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  8. "1970 ABA Draft on databaseBasketball.com". databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-16. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  9. https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/a/ardji01.html.
  10. "Meet the Men in Green – Jim Ard | Celtics.com – The official website of the Boston Celtics". nba.com. Archived from the original on 2009-08-12. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  11. "NBA.com: Triple-OT Classic Highlights Boston's 13th Title". nba.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-21. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  12. "Championship Wins: 1975-1976 | The Official Site of the BOSTON CELTICS". nba.com. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
  13. "What the Hell Happened to...Jim Ard? | CelticsLife.com – Boston Celtics Fan Site, Blog, T-shirts". celticslife.com. Retrieved 2015-01-28.


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