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Clifford Ray (born January 21, 1949 in Union, South Carolina) is a former professional basketball player.

A 6-9 center, Ray played three of his ten seasons in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls (1971-74) and the other seven with the Golden State Warriors (1974-81).

Ray played his college basketball at the University of Oklahoma. In 1971 the Chicago Bulls selected him in the third round of the NBA Draft. He spent three seasons with the Bulls, his best being 1973-74 during which he averaged 9.3 points and 12.2 rebounds per game.

After the 1973-74 season Ray was traded to Golden State for fellow center Nate Thurmond. In 1975 the Warriors, led by Rick Barry and coached by Al Attles, won the NBA championship. They defeated Ray's former team - the Chicago Bulls - in the Western Conference finals before before sweeping the Washington Bullets in the NBA Finals. [1]

Ray is one of a handful of players to have played at least ten seasons in the pros and to have recorded more rebounds (6953 over 784 games for an 8.9 average) than points (5821, for a 7.4 average) for his career.

In 1978, Ray was in the news for an entirely different reason: he helped save a dolphin's life. At Marine World in Redwood City, California, during maintenance in the tank of a bottlenose dolphin named "Mr. Spock", the dolphin swallowed a sharp screw. The veterinarian was unwilling to perform a risky operation while the screw was still in the dolphin's first stomach, just inches beyond his reach. His frustrated suggestion that he needed longer arms led someone to ask local star Ray (whose arms are 3 feet 9 inches, or 114 centimeters, long) if he could help. With gloves, lubrication, and guidance, he was able to reach down Spock's throat and retrieve the screw before it could cause more damage.^[1] In December 2006, Bao Xishun, the world's tallest living man, saved the lives of two dolphins in the same manner as Ray.

After his playing career, Ray worked as an assistant coach with the Dallas Mavericks. He also coached in the Continental Basketball Association, where he landed his lone head coaching job with the Fort Wayne Fury, replacing former teammate Rick Barry as head coach at the end of the season. Later, he worked as a New Jersey Nets assistant before returning to Golden State as an assistant coach. He had also worked as an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic.

In his post-playing carer, Ray has worked with many NBA big men, including Chris Webber and Ben Wallace. As an Orlando Magic assistant, he was responsible for the development of Dwight Howard. In May 2006, Ray was signed by the Boston Celtics to work with big men Kendrick Perkins and Al Jefferson.^[1] During the off-season, Ray and former Celtics great Robert Parish conduct a Big Man Camp in Bradenton, Florida, where they work with many big men improving their game. [2]

• Ray has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Oklahoma and can play most woodwind instruments.

1. ^ ^{a b} Springer, Shira. "Ray jumps into job". Boston Globe, May 24, 2006.