James Jones a ‘silent assassin’ from long distance

Many of the nation’s NBA fans — and the Boston Celtics — were probably shocked to see James Jones score 25 points off the bench and spark the Heat to a 99-90 win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday.

But for the coaches and players who worked alongside Jones at the University of Miami from 1999 to 2003, his big night was not entirely surprising. He is the best student and one of hardest-working players ever to come out of the Hurricanes program, and they view his performance as a just reward.

Jones graduated from UM with a finance degree and a 3.4 grade point average. He remains the only UM men’s basketball player ever to be named Academic All-American, and he was as obsessed with his jump shot as he was with his grades.

Perry Clark, the former UM coach, texted Jones a congratulatory note immediately after the game from Corpus Christi, Texas. Stan Jones, the former UM assistant coach who recruited him with Leonard Hamilton, watched with pride from his home in Tallahassee.

And Brandon Okpalobi, a former Hurricanes teammate, fielded calls from relatives and friends during the game asking, “Didn’t you play with that guy at UM?”

VERY PROUD
“I am very, very proud of the way he played, but his performance didn’t surprise me at all,” Clark said. “His work ethic and confidence in himself has been his label since he played for us at UM. He is quiet, and very, very smart, and as competitive as they come. His talent and personality are the perfect complements for that Heat team.”

When Jones played for Clark at UM from 2000 to ’03, the coach called him “our silent assassin.” The media and opposing defenses tended to focus on Darius Rice and John Salmons, and Jones took advantage.

STEALTHY PLAYER
“James likes sneaking up on people,” Salmons said at the time. “Makes him hungry.”

Said Rice: “They never key on James, and he capitalizes.”

A prime example was a 2001 game against then-No. 22 Seton Hall.

All the talk was of the Pirates’ Eddie Griffin, who was a highly-regarded freshman. Griffin was leading the nation with averages of 12.5 rebounds and 5.1 blocks a game. More than 15 NBA scouts were at Miami Arena to see him.

What they saw was Jones, the game’s other No. 33, score a game-high 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting (5 of 7 from three-point range). His defense was equally impressive. Jones held Griffin to 12 points — seven came in the final minutes — and zero blocks.

PERFECT FORM
“James was always in the gym early and left late,” Okpalobi said.

“Shooters have to shoot, and you can tell by his perfect form how much he has worked. It’s all paying off. With LeBron [James] and [Dwyane] Wade being slashers, that leaves James to take target practice.”

Stan Jones, no relation, was impressed with Jones from the time he started recruiting him from Miami American. The son of two corrections officers, James Jones was extremely disciplined.

“His character and great intelligence separate him from the pack,” Jones said. “He has a quiet confidence, never lets misses bother him, and that’s why he’s such a good shooter. But Sunday, I was most proud of his toughness. I was glad to see him add fire to the team and not let guys bully him.”

Early this season, Jones was asked what it was like playing with the Big 3.

“I’m just another clown in this circus,” he said, smiling.

The Celtics will surely take that clown more seriously in Game 2 on Tuesday.



(miamiherald.com)