Luke Jones

Strengths: Pass-first point guard with great court vision and great paws for hands, allowing him to throw passes at difficult angles at ease...Looks relatively calm and composed on the court, like a true PG who fundamentally runs his team in half-court sets and transition game relatively well...Sees plays before they develop and orchestrates his team's movements well, has huge primacy as his teammates have come to respect him over the course of three years...Very unselfish. Makes his teammates better and puts them in positions to get the easy basket...Excellent ballhandling skills. Nice crossover ability, never really loses the ball and mostly has full control of it when not passing, and doesn't overabuse this ability like most other players do...Has great height and build for a point guard physically, although he doesn't always fully utilize this to his advantage...Good defender with the potential to become a great defender. People underestimate this aspect of his game by a lot, but he has a nose for sticking with his man and using his quick hands and anticipation skills to get steals...Can take some players off the dribble and get to the basket decently at least in the college level, and strength allows him to finish...Has become a decent three point shooter with some improvement from his sophomore year...

Weaknesses: Not gifted with much physical tools, beyond his height and weight...Not overly quick, and only has an average first step which may potentially limit the number of drives to the basket he will get in the next level...Sometimes uses his strength and body well to finish, but most of the time he misses around the basket because he doesn't make use of it...Not a fastbreak player running on steam. Likes to be the passer involved in fastbreaks, doesn't do an excellent job finishing for himself in transition...Doesn't make use of his physical tools well. Rarely posts up guards even though he has the ability to do so...Speed can be an issue with regards to the NBA, has not really been tested with cat-quick PGs so his defensive efficiency might decrease at the next level...Can be too unselfish at times. Passes up open shots and that in itself can disrupt the efficiency of the offense...Can be too preoccupied with passing the ball, overpassing which results in turnovers (averages 3.3 turnovers per game due to Arizona's style of offense)...Lacks a serviceable mid-range game...Three point shot is improving a bit but still not consistent in college range, and certainly not for NBA range, although that could improve given his progression there...Transition to the NBA-style of game is also a concern. A "streetball" player, shows a tendency to do streetball moves in the college game which may not be exactly tolerated in the NBA. May need to adjust his overall game...One of his most major problems is his injury problems. Played roughly half a season in his previous two years in Arizona with ACL and hip problems, and he needs to show an ability to consistently stay healthy, improve his conditioning...

Notes: Played streetball in Rucker Park and was a high school dropout before Arizona noticed and recruited him for his overall talent and playmaking ability. Was not highly touted and recruited but he did a good job of dispelling that notion, getting a season high 12 assists against USC and a career high 14 assists against California...Still trying to grow into his body. Came into Arizona as a 6'1", 170 lb. PG and has hit the weight room for the past couple of seasons, in addition to gaining a growth spurt to make him a good-sized PG right now. Coach Leroy Werster had this to say about him, "This kid is the classic PG who sacrifices his shots for the sake of the team. That is what I call a "true player."