Jess Kersey

American basketball referee (1941-2017)

Jesse "Jess" Kersey (January 12, 1941 – April 22, 2017)[1] was an American basketball referee. He was born in Newport News, Virginia. He worked for the American Basketball Association and the National Basketball Association.[2]

Kersey in 2007.

Kersey joined the NBA in 1973. During his 30 year career, he officiated 1,911 regular season games, 189 playoff games and 18 NBA Finals games.[1]

In July 1997, Kersey resigned from the NBA after 24 seasons as a referee after he pleaded guilty to tax evasion.[3]

Kersey died of cancer on April 22, 2017 in Williamsburg, Virginia, at the age of 76.[4]

References change

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Jess Kersey". National Basketball Referees Association. Archived from the original on 2007-05-29. Retrieved 2017-04-23.
  2. Pluto, Terry, 'Loose Balls: The Short, Wild Life of the American Basketball Association, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1990, ISBN 978-1-4165-4061-8, p.133
  3. "Kersey Resigns as Official". The New York Times. July 31, 1997. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  4. Teel, David. "Peninsula icon, former NBA referee Jess Kersey remembered for 'magnetic personality'". dailypress.com. Archived from the original on 2017-05-31. Retrieved 2019-02-15.