As an OKC fan I am quite biased about my Thunder players but I try my best not to do so when I evaluate a player. I want to talk about Jones, the steal he was in the 2012 NBA Draft and the future he holds in the NBA.
Jones after his freshman year at Baylor looked like a possible #2 pick behind Kyrie Irving in the 2011 Draft because of his athleticism combined with his length. He basically has guard skills (unrefined of course) with a big mans body similar to Kevin Durant, albeit Durant more skilled and Jones more athletic. He skipped on the 2011 Draft simply because he did not feel ready to compete at a high level in the NBA. That was the right call on his behalf as even now he is a very raw player. In his second year of college he did not show any significant improvement in his game. He had inconsistent nights where some games he would go for 31 points and 11 rebounds against Kansas State and others 4 points and 2 rebounds total. This inconsistency really dropped his draft stock to about the late lottery in the 2012 Draft. There were questions about his motor and will to win which was brought about because of the inconsistency in his game.
As you may know there was a rumor that Jones had long term knee problems which deterred teams that wanted a safe pick in the draft, and because of that he fell all the way to OKC at pick 28. He told media after he had been drafted that when the pick came around he didn't think they would pick him because OKC doesn't need him obviously with a 3 time scoring champion playing the same position. Sam Presti the Oklahoma City Thunder's General Manager was happy with picking him at 28 because the team had just come off a trip to the NBA Finals so he felt he could draft the best player available. That turned out to be the biggest blessing for Jones as he would be mentored by Kevin Durant the 1st Team All NBA player himself.
In the summer league and college for that matter it was clear that Jones had one of the highest upsides in the draft. It was very difficult to tell how close he would get to reaching his full potential because of his motor issues and times in the game where he seemed to disappear in college however he was still a very promising prospect which is why I was so excited when we picked him up.
As you can see here the mans athleticism even at the age of 18 is incredible. Jones is probably the fastest player in the NBA over 6'8. He set combine times of 3.19s for the 3/4 court sprint and 11.31s for the lane agility test. His current team mate and All Star point guard Russell Westbrook who many believe to be the most athletic PG to ever play the game set combine times of 3.08s for the 3/4 court sprint and 10.98s for the agility test is only slightly faster than Jones and when you look at their vertical measurements Jones actually tops Westbrook in both the standing vert and max vert. Jones' numbers being 33 inches for the standing and 38.5 inches for his max vert. Westbrooks numbers were slightly lower at 30 inches and 36 inches respectively. Granted that Westbrook would be more athletic now than he was at the time of the combine, the mere thought that a guy that has 8 inches on him and is almost as athletic is scary. The athleticism and the size that Jones has is what makes his ceiling so incredibly high. He is a proper 6'11 and has a 7'2 wingspan which is getting close to Durant kind of length, so in a physical way he is almost a combination of Westbrook and Durant.
Even with all his athletic gifts Jones is very raw and far from reaching his incredible potential. Last season he spent most of his time in the D-League because there simply weren't minutes for him in the senior squad at OKC. The minutes he did play were garbage minutes at the end of games, however the last game of the regular season against the Bucks he started (to rest Durant) and scored 14 points showing he could hit from mid-range and is an average finisher around the basket.
Over the years Oklahoma City with its core of Durant and Westbrook have made hard work a normal thing within the organisation which sure does not resonate around the NBA with other players (looking at you Mr Bynum). This is evident in Jones' improvement from last season. In the 23 total games played in, he has become a decent contributor off the bench but the reason he has playing time is because of his work over the summer to improve his defense. Defense really is all about lateral quickness, correct team defense being taught and effort. Coach Brooks preaches defense and when he thinks you can play defense is when you will start to see proper minutes with the Thunder. He has been using Jones as a utility defender. With his size and speed Jones can guard anyone from point guard to power forward making him ideal to play in crunch time because he can simply switch on screens and such. This playing time has allowed him to show some offensive highlights as well. He is currently the best 3 point shooter on the Thunder roster. Shooting a lights out 47% from downtown. Granted most of his looks are open corner 3's which is the most efficient shot on the court other than layups and dunks. Speaking of dunks...
Jones has great chemistry with Jeremy Lamb but more importantly Reggie Jackson. Jackson and Jones know eachothers tendencies very well as simple eye contact has lead to a lot of alley-oop dunks for Jones from Jackson's passes. Simply throw it near the ring and he will do the rest. Even Westbrook has got in on the act as he hits Jones for the easy dunk now and then. Here's a pretty good example of that:
His free throw percentage is currently under 50% but it was around 65% in the D-League last year which isn't great but shows that it is a matter of small sample size not Shaqitis.
Jones' future in the NBA looks bright. It does seem a bit unlikely he will be with the Thunder for a long time however as he will make jumps in production in the coming years and therefore will be worth more money which the Thunder do not have, as there is already a Superstar Durant, All Star or borderline Superstar Westbrook, a very good player albeit inconsistent Ibaka and waste of money and court space for that matter Kendrick Perkins whom are soaking up the dollars at the moment in Oklahoma.
A lot of people think Jones could be the next Paul George. I do not agree at all. Jones' potential is so unique that he could be a player no one has ever seen before. A guy that can literally do everything on a basketball court. Rebound, Pass (maybe maybe not), Score and Defend. He could guard any position on the court when he puts on a bit more size because of the length, the athleticism and the skills. For a guy his height he has legitimate handles. No where near that of a Point Guard but the same of any young Shooting Guard that has just started to be an initiator of the offense. The idea that people had of Jones being the next Paul George is probably just based of the fact that they along with Danny Granger have an uncanny resemblance to one Tracy Mcgrady.
I am currently on summer break so I will bring up a topic when I feel up to it for the next month depending really upon how bored I am. Anyway If you read this far thank you very much for sticking with it and I hope you enjoyed reading it.
Feedback is very welcome and can be referring to the topic or my crap writing skills.
