John Long (basketball player)

John Long

Long at the dedication of Dick Vitale Court at the University of Detroit Mercy's Calihan Hall in 2011.
Personal information
Born	(1956-08-28) August 28, 1956 Romulus, Michigan
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight	195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school	Romulus (Romulus, Michigan)
College	Detroit Mercy (1974–1978)
NBA draft	1978: 2nd round, 29th overall pick
Selected by the Detroit Pistons
Playing career	1978–1997
Position	Shooting guard / Small forward
Number	25, 34
Career history
1978–1986	Detroit Pistons
1986–1989	Indiana Pacers
1989	Detroit Pistons
1989–1990	Atlanta Hawks
1990–1991	Tours Joué Basket
1991	Detroit Pistons
1994	Sioux Falls Skyforce
1996–1997	Toronto Raptors
Career highlights and awards
NBA champion (1989) No. 50 retired by Detroit Mercy Titans
Career NBA statistics
Points	12,131 (13.6 ppg)
Rebounds	2,492 (2.8 rpg)
Steals	912 (1.0 spg)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

John Eddie Long (born August 28, 1956) is an American retired professional basketball player.

After starring at the University of Detroit, the 6' 5" (1.96 m) shooting guard was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the second round of the 1978 NBA draft. The move was largely influenced by Dick Vitale, who coached Long at UD before going to the Pistons. He played eight seasons for the Pistons, and he averaged a career-high 21.9 points per game in 1981–82. Long was the original backcourt partner to point guard Isiah Thomas before Joe Dumars was drafted.

After Dumars was named the starter, Long later played for the Indiana Pacers, where he was backed up by Reggie Miller before playing for the Atlanta Hawks. After playing overseas and in the minor leagues for several years, Long signed with the Toronto Raptors for one season, and he retired in 1997 with 12,131 career points. At the time, the 41-year-old Long was the second oldest player in the NBA behind Robert Parish, who was 43.

Two of John Long's nephews, Terry Mills and Grant Long, also played in the NBA. The nephews were teammates in Detroit during the 1996–1997 season. All three men played two seasons or more for the Detroit Pistons. He is currently a radio analyst for the Pistons.

NBA 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
†	Won an NBA championship

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1978–79	Detroit	82	–	30.5	.469	–	.826	3.2	1.5	1.2	0.2	16.1
1979–80	Detroit	69	–	34.3	.505	.083	.825	4.9	3.0	1.9	0.4	19.4
1980–81	Detroit	59	–	29.7	.461	.182	.870	3.3	1.8	1.6	0.4	17.7
1981–82	Detroit	69	66	32.0	.492	.133	.865	3.7	2.1	0.9	0.4	21.9
1982–83	Detroit	70	30	21.2	.451	.286	.760	2.6	1.5	0.6	0.2	10.5
1983–84	Detroit	82	82	30.7	.472	.200	.884	3.5	2.5	1.1	0.2	16.3
1984–85	Detroit	66	55	27.6	.487	.333	.862	2.9	2.0	1.1	0.2	14.7
1985–86	Detroit	62	30	19.0	.482	.188	.856	1.6	1.3	0.7	0.2	10.0
1986–87	Indiana	80	68	28.3	.419	.284	.890	2.7	3.2	1.2	0.1	15.2
1987–88	Indiana	81	81	25.0	.474	.442	.907	2.8	2.1	1.0	0.1	12.8
1988–89	Indiana	44	1	17.4	.401	.400	.937	1.5	1.5	0.7	0.0	7.3
1988–89†	Detroit	24	0	6.3	.475	–	.846	0.5	0.6	0.0	0.1	2.0
1989–90	Atlanta	48	19	21.5	.453	.345	.836	1.7	1.8	0.9	0.1	8.4
1990–91	Detroit	25	0	10.2	.412	.333	.960	1.3	0.7	0.4	0.1	3.8
1996–97	Toronto	32	0	11.6	.393	.353	.893	1.3	0.7	0.3	0.1	4.0
Career		893	432	25.4	.467	.322	.862	2.8	1.9	1.0	0.2	13.6

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1984	Detroit	5	–	29.8	.364	.000	1.000	2.2	0.4	1.4	0.0	11.0
1985	Detroit	9	9	28.3	.457	.250	1.000	1.9	1.4	1.6	0.2	12.4
1986	Detroit	1	0	13.0	.400	–	1.000	1.0	0.0	1.0	0.0	7.0
1987	Indiana	4	4	27.3	.308	.167	.846	1.5	2.3	1.5	0.0	11.0
1989†	Detroit	4	0	2.0	1.000	–	1.000	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.3
Career		23	13	23.2	.399	.182	.959	1.5	1.0	1.2	0.1	9.7

External links

• Career Stats