James Jones (basketball player)

James Andrew Jones (born October 4, 1980) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays with the Miami Heat.

The 6'8" (203cm), 215 lb (98 kg) small forward who attended American Senior High in Miami was picked 49th by the Indiana Pacers in the 2003 NBA Draft out of the University of Miami.^[1] After playing in only 26 total minutes^[2] over six games during his rookie campaign, he played almost a full season during 2004–05, averaging 4.9 points per game while also ranking 25th in the NBA in three-point conversion percentage (39.8%).^[2]

Jones was traded by the Pacers to the Phoenix Suns on August 25, 2005, in exchange for a 2008 second-round draft pick.^[2]

In June 2007, Jones was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers along with the draft rights to Rudy Fernandez, the 24th pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, in exchange for cash considerations.^[3]

During the 2007 season, Jones stayed near the top of the rankings in three-point shooting percentage, finishing third in the league, with a shooting percentage of 44.4%.^[4] Despite his good shooting for the year, Jones was not selected to participate in the Three-point Shootout contest during the 2008 NBA All-Star Game, much to the chagrin of Trail Blazers fans.^[5]

On June 26, 2008, Jones used his player option to opt-out of his contract with the Trail Blazers, making him a free agent for the off season.^[6] On July 9, 2008, Jones signed a contract with the Miami Heat. He earned $4 million in his first year of a potential five-year contract, worth up to $23.2 million. The first two years were guaranteed, while the final three were options held by both the Miami Heat and Jones.

On June 29, 2010, he was released to clear salary cap space worth $400,000. On July 19, 2010, Jones was re-signed by the Miami Heat for the league minimum.^[7]

On February 19, 2011, Jones won the NBA Three-Point Shootout in Los Angeles at the Staples Center.

Awards

• 2010-11 Foot Locker Three-Point Contest Champion
• 2002–03 Honorable Mention All-Big East Conference Team
• 2002–03 Verizon Academic All-American
• 2002–03 Big East All-Academic Team
• 2001–02 All-Big East Conference Third Team
• 2001–02 Verizon Academic All-District III selection
• 2001–02 Big East All-Academic Team
• 2000–01 Big East All-Academic Team
• 1999–00 Big East All-Academic Team
• 1998–99 Class 6A Player of the Year in Florida
• 1998–99 First-team All-State Selection
• 1998–99 First-team All-Dade County Selection
• 1998–99 Miami Herald Boy's Basketball Player of the Year

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Notes

1. ^ Trail Blazers Acquire James Jones and Draft Rights to Rudy Fernandez, Waive Steve Francis
2. ^ ^{a b c} Pacers Obtain Pick from Suns for Jones
3. ^ Suns trade James Jones to Blazers | Suns / NBA | eastvalleytribune.com
4. ^ NBA.com 3-point leaders
5. ^ Casey Holdahl. "James Jones: 'My name is too plain'". Trail Blazers Center Court Blog. http://trailblazerscentercourt.blogspot.com/2008/02/james-jones-my-name-is-too-plain.html. 
6. ^ Jason Quick. "Jones opts out of contract, becomes free agent". The Oregonian, Behind the Blazers Beat. http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindblazersbeat/2008/06/jones_opts_out_of_contract_bec.html. 
7. ^ HEAT Re-Signs James Jones

External links

• NBA Player Profile - James Jones