Surf City Summary: Latest on Quinn Cook, Damian Jones, Chris Boucher
Damian Jones finding his niche
As I may have stated multiple times in past articles, Damian Jones has enjoyed a rather successful season with the Santa Cruz Warriors while on assignment from the Golden State Warriors.
In 19 games with the Sea Dubs this season, the 7-foot big man has averaged 16.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.4 blocks 31.0 minutes per game. Each of those numbers are career-highs for Jones, who’s finally begun to shape into the center we all hope he can become.
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He’s also shot a career-high 70.2 percent from the field and 64.8 percent from the free throw line, which speaks volumes about how far along Jones is with his offensive development. Primarily known as a rim protector in college, Jones has slowly become more and more well rounded over the course of this season.
Any time I’m asked about Jones’ potential, I confidently refer to him as Golden State’s center of the future. I would say he’s a more assertive, more reliable version of Festus Ezeli, though Jones is still a great deal younger and therefore has a great deal more upside as of right now.
He’ll never be that stretch big man capable of stepping out comfortably behind the arc, but that’s not what Golden State necessarily needs. We see how Jordan Bell currently fits with Golden State, and I definitely see Jones fitting into that mold of an athletic rim protector capable of finishing off lobs or in the pick-and-roll.
He’s also shown an impressive willingness to step out of the paint to switch onto guards and wingmen, which could eventually prove useful at the next level. He moves his feet extremely well and has consistently proven himself to have solid defensive instincts, so I would love to see Golden State test that extensively at the next level next season.
As much as I’d hate JaVale McGee to go, the Damian Jones era is quickly approaching.