Jim Ligon

James Thomas "Goose" Ligon (February 22, 1944 – April 17, 2004^[1]) was an American professional basketball player.

Jim Ligon

Ligon, circa 1970
Personal information
Born	(1944-02-22)February 22, 1944 Kokomo, Indiana, U.S.
Died	April 17, 2004(2004-04-17) (aged 60)
Listed height	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight	210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school	Kokomo (Kokomo, Indiana)
NBA draft	1966: undrafted
Playing career	1967–1974
Position	Power forward / center
Number	22, 12
Career history
1967–1971	Kentucky Colonels
1971–1972	Pittsburgh Condors
1972–1974	Virginia Squires
Career highlights
ABA All-Star (1969) First-team Parade All-American (1962)
Stats at Basketball Reference

A 6'7" forward/center, Ligon starred at Kokomo High School in Indiana but never played in college due to legal issues. He played for the Harlem Magicians during the 1962–63 season and then spent the next three years imprisoned in the Indiana Reformatory after being convicted of "assault and battery with intent to gratify sexual desires."^[2][3]

In 1967, he earned a spot with the Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association and went on to have a seven-year ABA career with the Colonels, Pittsburgh Condors, and Virginia Squires. Ligon averaged 12.8 points per game and 10.9 rebounds per game in his ABA career and appeared in the 1969 ABA All-Star Game.

A ruptured Achilles tendon in the 1973–74 season ended Ligon's career. He worked 11 years with the Transit Authority of River City but was plagued by a cocaine addiction that went on for years. By 1997, it was reported that he was suffering from glaucoma. He died in 2004 at the age of 60.