There is no other way to say it: Clifford Ray was a badass.
In his day, centers were centers and that was just the way it was. Well Ray played center at 6-9 and did it very well, routinely going up against much taller players like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or much stronger players like Bob Lanier.
He was a powerful figure on the court and in the lockerroom, where his teammates adored him.
Interesting trivia: Ray got a BFA in music and can get around on most woodwinds.
He had a cool role in the basketball movie Inside Moves and had an even cooler accomplishment in 1978, when he saved a dolphin’s life at Marine World: the dolphin had swallowed something dangerous and only someone with arms as long as Ray’s could retrieve it, and thus avoid dangerous surgery.