Joe Ellis (basketball)

Joseph Franklin Ellis (born May 3, 1944) is an American former professional basketball player who played eight seasons in the NBA for the Warriors (first in San Francisco then in Oakland). He played college basketball for the San Francisco Dons.

Joe Ellis

Personal information
Born	(1944-05-03) May 3, 1944 (age 80) Oakland, California, U.S.
Listed height	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight	175 lb (79 kg)
Career information
High school	McClymonds (Oakland, California)
College	San Francisco (1963–1966)
NBA draft	1966: 2nd round, 13th overall pick
Selected by the San Francisco Warriors
Playing career	1966–1975
Position	Small forward / shooting guard
Number	31
Career history
1966–1974	San Francisco / Golden State Warriors
1975	Belgium Lions
Career highlights and awards
No. 31 retired by San Francisco Dons
Career NBA statistics
Points	4,623 (8.8 ppg)
Rebounds	2,686 (5.1 rpg)
Assists	716 (1.4 apg)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

High school career

Ellis attended McClymonds High School in Oakland,^[1] from 1960 to 1962 he was a member of three Tournament of Champions teams. He made the All Tournament Team in both his varsity years and in his senior year was named the All Tournament Most Valuable Player. He was also selected to the All City Teams and in 1962 was named the Northern California Player of the year.

College career

Ellis stayed in state for his collegiate career, joining the University of San Francisco. He played for the Dons from 1963 to 1966, being part of First Team All Conference teams each year. He was named Northern California Player of the Year and also received an All American honorable mention. He was one of four juniors chosen in 1965 to represent the United States in the World University Games. Scoring 1,120 points for the team (third all-time best) he was inducted into the USF Hall of Fame in 1973 and named one of 75 "Legends of the Hilltop" in 2006 for the 150th anniversary of the university.^[2] In 2020, USF retired Ellis' number 31.^[3]

Professional career

Ellis was selected by the San Francisco Warriors in the second round (13th pick overall) of the 1966 NBA draft. He played eight seasons in the NBA for his hometown club (who relocated to Oakland in 1971), posting 4,825 points at an average of 8.6 per game (and 5.0 rebounds per game). He held double-figure scoring averages in three successive seasons, including averages of 15.8 points per game during the 1969–70 season.^[2]

He played for the Belgium Lions of the European Professional Basketball League in 1975.^[4]

Career statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

NBA

Source^[5]

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	STL	BLK	PPG
1966–67	San Francisco	41	8.1	.409	.760	2.7	.7			3.7
1967–68	San Francisco	51	12.2	.368	.640	3.8	.7			5.0
1968–69	San Francisco	74	23.4	.395	.731	6.5	1.8			12.0
1969–70	San Francisco	76	31.3	.410	.741	7.8	1.8			15.8
1970–71	San Francisco	80	28.4	.396	.744	6.4	2.0			10.8
1971–72	Golden State	78	18.7	.411	.720	5.0	1.2			8.2
1972–73	Golden State	74	14.2	.409	.742	3.8	1.2			6.3
1973–74	Golden State	50	10.3	.321	.581	2.4	.7	.7	.2	2.8
Career		524	19.8	.398	.727	5.1	1.4	.7	.2	8.8

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	PPG
1967	San Francisco	3	2.0	.250	–	.3	.7	.7
1968	San Francisco	9	11.6	.295	.857	2.1	.8	3.6
1969	San Francisco	6	26.8	.291	.640	8.5	.5	10.3
1971	San Francisco	5	18.2	.310	.667	4.2	.0	5.6
1972	Golden State	5	22.6	.333	.706	4.2	.8	10.8
1973	Golden State	10	10.0	.316	–	1.8	.7	2.4
Career		38	15.1	.307	.692	3.4	.6	5.3

References

1. Mitchell, Eileen (April 27, 2013). "Giving back to the game". SFGATE. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
2. "San Francisco Hall Of Honor Inductees". WCCsports.com. Retrieved November 19, 2017.
3. "USF to Retire Joe Ellis' #31". wccsports.com. February 3, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
4. McLain, Jim (June 1, 1975). "Jack Holley: the highs and lows of a Switzerland Alpine". The Times (Shreveport). Retrieved November 12, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. (subscription required)
5. "Joe Ellis NBA stats". Basketball Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 30, 2024.