Ron Boone

Boone grew up in the Logan Fontenelle housing project and attended Technical High School in North Omaha, Nebraska. In high school, Boone played basketball for Coach Neal Mosser, who had led Tech to the 1963 State title and had coached Basketball of Famer Bob Boozer and Baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson before Boone. Boone stood only 5\'7" when he graduated from high school and didn\'t become a starter in basketball until his senior season. Boone also played baseball under Josh Gibson, older brother of Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson, also an Omaha native and Technical High School alumnus. \n', ' Small in stature at the time, Boone reflected on his basketball aspirations after high school. “I remember playing in a league down at the local YMCA and just having a good time — scoring points — and this friend of mine asked one of the officials if he thought I could play major college basketball and the guy said, ‘No way,’ Boone recalled. “That was always in the back of my mind because I thought I could. If there was anything in my life that I can say inspired me, it was those comments.”\n', ' After high school, Boone and a teammate accepted offers to play junior college basketball. Boone played one season at Clarinda Community College in Clarinda, Iowa, where he suddenly grew to 6\'2" and averaged 26 points per game.\n', '