Bill Jones (basketball, born 1914)

{{short description|American basketball player}}

{{Infobox basketball biography

| name = Bill Jones

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| position = Guard

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| birth_date = {{birth date|1914|2|3}}

| birth_place = Toledo, Ohio

| death_date = {{death date and age|2006|4|9|1914|2|3}}

| death_place = Los Angeles, California

| nationality = American

| high_school = Woodward (Toledo, Ohio)
Libbey (Toledo, Ohio)

| college = {{nowrap|Toledo (1933–1934; 1936–1938)}}

| years1 = 1942

| team1 = Toledo Jim White Chevrolets

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William McNeil Jones (February 3, 1914 – April 9, 2006) was an American professional basketball player.[https://www.basketball-reference.com/nbl/players/j/joneswi01n.html Bill Jones NBL stats]. basketball-reference.com. Retrieved on September 4, 2014. He played in all five games for the National Basketball League's Toledo Jim White Chevrolets before the team disbanded early into the 1942–43 season.[https://www.basketball-reference.com/nbl/teams/TJW/1943.html 1942–43 Toledo Jim White Chevrolets Stats]. basketball-reference.com. Retrieved on September 4, 2014. Jones was one of the earliest African-American players in the NBL and is considered a pioneer of integration in professional basketball.{{cite web| title ='He lived a good life': Toledo native Bill Jones was a basketball pioneer| work =The (Toledo) Blade| publisher =| date =May 7, 2006

| url =http://www.toledoblade.com/Opinion/2006/05/07/He-lived-a-good-life-Toledo-native-Bill-Jones-was-a-basketball-pioneer.html| accessdate =September 4, 2014}}

He played collegiately at the University of Toledo,{{cite web| title =2009–10 Men's Basketball Media Guide| work =All-time letterwinners| publisher =University of Toledo| year =2009| url =https://admin.xosn.com/fls/18000/mediaguide/m-baskbl/2009/2009History.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=18000| format =PDF| accessdate =September 4, 2014| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20160303181320/https://admin.xosn.com/fls/18000/mediaguide/m-baskbl/2009/2009History.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=18000| archive-date =March 3, 2016| url-status =dead}} followed by stints with barnstorming teams as well as the Harlem Globetrotters.{{cite web| title =African Americans in Toledo Sports – Basketball| work =William Jones| publisher =Toledo's Attic| date =July 24, 2012| url =http://toledosattic.org/exhibits/black-history-month-2013/104-essays/sportshistory/174-afroamintoledosports?showall=&start=4| accessdate =September 4, 2014}} He eventually moved to Los Angeles, California.