09/07/2001
Riders net Gaines

Billy Mims has added a third player to his roster for the 2001/02 BBL Championship season, with the signing of former BBL All Star Jon Gaines.

Gaines, 29, joined Worthing in 1998 and played two season for the Bears, the second of which saw the franchise relocated in Brighton. During the first season, he was third in the league in scoring, averaging over 25 points per game.

"In his first season at Worthing not only was he a prolific scorer but also he made 115 three pointers, which was a league best for made three-point field goals," explained Coach Mims. "We were next to last in British basketball in three-point field goal accuracy last year, so one of the things I've tried to do in the off-season is to try to address that need. Jon Gaines is certainly someone who can try to help us address that."

Gaines' 115 made three-pointers (at an average of 41%) ranked as one of the best single-season efforts in BBL history. During the 1998/99 season he also averaged nearly seven rebounds per game and was ranked third in the Southern All Star ratings, earning him a selection for Billy Mims' South squad, which won the closest All Star Game in BBL history 158-156.

"Jon had an excellent game that day and I remember when he was out there on the floor at the time thinking, 'Wow, this guy can really play' and one day I would like to coach him and now I have that opportunity at Leicester," recalled Mims.

Prior to joining the Bears, the 6'5" guard/forward Gaines won the NCAA Division II Championship with California State Bakersfield after netting five three pointers in the Championship game. He joined Bakersfield from Division I Southern Utah, where he led his conference in three-point shooting.

"It hurt us when we went against zones last season," explained Mims. "So we wanted to go out and find players that we thought could be more aggressive at attacking zone from the perimeter and Jon Gaines' numbers in the BBL prove that he can."

Gaines joins captain Billy Singleton and Ralph Blalock on the roster for the forthcoming season, with further additions expected shortly.