Born and raised in the Ducktown neighborhood of Atlantic City, Chris Ford excelled on the Holy Spirit High School Spartans’ basketball team, averaging 33 points per game as a senior and finishing with a still-record 1,507 career points.
He would go on to Villanova University, contributing to a Wildcats squad that went to three straight NCAA tournaments, and to the NBA, where in addition to being a championship player and coach, he made the league’s first-ever three-point shot.
He was a legend on and off the court, Holy Spirit athletic director Steve Normane said of Ford, who died Jan. 17 at age 74. “The Holy Spirit community, and the South Jersey basketball community, pass on our condolences to the Ford family,” he said.
As the Absecon high school celebrates its 100th anniversary this year, Normane said Ford and his accomplishments continue to be an inspiration to the Spartan community. “People like him are why we continue to thrive.”
Still keeping local ties to the Jersey shore, Ford was a fixture at his grandchildren’s Cape-Atlantic League athletic contests, Normane said. Earlier this year, for Holy Spirit’s Seagull Classic, which brought together New Jersey’s high school basketball teams for a three-day tournament, Ford was back on his school court to root for his grandson, a standout at Egg Harbor Township.
In a statement announcing his passing, Ford’s family remembered his “kind and generous nature. He was down-to-earth and had the uncanny ability to make everyone around him feel special. … He had an easy, genuine way about him that others couldn’t help but feel. He was selfless with his time and fiercely loyal to his family, friends and community. Despite all his successes, he never forgot where he came from, remaining committed to supporting those around him.”
Ford’s jersey number 42 was retired by Holy Spirit High School and Villanova University. He is a member of the Halls of Fame at Holy Spirit High School, Villanova University, the Big 5, City of Atlantic City, South Jersey Basketball, and the NJSIAA; he was a Philadelphia Sports Writers’ Association Living Legend, and he was named to the Detroit Pistons’ All-Time Team.
The 6-foot-5-inch guard was taken in the second round of the NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons in 1972 and played several years there before being traded to Boston.
It was as a Celtic on Oct. 12, 1979, against the Houston Rockets, the opening night of the season, when Ford, behind the arc, received a pass from teammate Tiny Archibald, shot the basketball over defender Robert Reid, and made the game’s first three-pointer.
Two years later, he was part of the 1981 championship team with teammates Larry Bird and Robert Parish. In 1983, Ford made the transition from player to assistant coach, and won two more titles with the Celtics. Moving into the head coach position, he led Boston to two Atlantic Division titles, before working in the same capacity with the Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers.
He is survived by his wife, Kathy (Salerno); four children: Chris Jr. and his wife, Danica (Coslop); Katie (DeRichie) and her husband, John; Anthony and his wife, Alyssa (Capasso), and Michael and his wife, Maura (McGivern); seven grandchildren: CJ, Chase, Isabella, Giuliana, Johnny, Ellis and Celeste; brother, Raymond, and his wife, Louise; and his sister, Mae Lee; a mother-in-law, Rita Salerno; and many nieces and nephews.
He was interred Jan. 23 at Holy Cross Cemetery in Mays Landing.
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