Recruiting Report: Koby Jones
Centennial High School finished the season 8-17 with a 6-2 region record. Although the season started with performances that were not up to what the team expected, they finished strong. In addition, they have a good portion of their team returning and look to be one of the favorites in their region. One of the most important returners for this group is Koby Jones.
Jones, a 6’4 2018 SF/PF, will need to continue his strong play in order to help this team reach their potential. He averaged nearly 16 points and 8 rebounds per game last year. In addition to having a number of returners, the group will have a new head coach. Randy Lavendar, formerly the head coach at Agua Fria, has had a lot of success in his two seasons as a Varsity head coach. He will look to Jones and the returners to make this transition successful.
College Interest
This past weekend, Jones received his first scholarship offer. Per Jones and PowerHouse Hoops twitter account, he has received an offer from Mesa Benedictine. In addition to his offer from Mesa Benedictine, Jones has received interest from “Cornell, Dixie State, Northern State University, and Point Loma.”
Jones is very clear as far as what he is looking for in a program. His top priority is to attend a high academic school. Jones carries a “3.8 unweighted GPA”. His hard work in the classroom has opened doors for him at the next level and he hopes to take that success in the classroom and carry it to a high caliber university.
As far as majors are concerned, he is hoping to major Engineering. His desire to major in Engineering is directly correlated to an elective class that he took at Centennial High School. He stated, “While taking that class, I learned about all types of engineers and I found them all to be very interesting.”
Jones currently plays for PowerHouse Hoops 17U Black. In addition to being able to play in front of a number of high profile programs, he has grown as a player. Moreover, he has enjoyed the opportunity to “travel around the country to see new places and grow closer as a family [with teammates].”
High School
In order for Centennial to take a huge step forward this year, Jones will have to continue his solid play. Last season, Jones led the team in points, rebounds, steals, and blocks per game. Moreover, he was extremely efficient from the field as he shot the basketball over 50% from inside the 3.
In addition to finishing at a high rate around the rim, Jones demonstrated his tremendous athleticism. He is motor and speed enable him to compete at a high level and win a number of 50/50 balls. Under the rim, this usually results in a board and a bucket. Moreover, he finished above the rim frequently. His athleticism mixed with his length have made many excited about the potential of playing him at the 2 or 3 at the next level.
In order for that to be a reality, Jones will need to continue to work on his ability to shoot the basketball from deep. This past season, he was only able to connect on 12% of his shots from that area. However, he shot it from deep at a much higher level during summer basketball for Centennial.
When he was asked about the transition to the new coaching staff, he mentioned that he is very excited about the new coach due to how “involved” he is in with the team and the individuals. In addition, he mentioned that he thinks “[Coach Lavendar] is going to put this program in the right direction.”
His goal for the next season is very simple – find a way to make a run in the state tournament. After missing the tournament last season and winning 8 games, he looks to take this team back to the state tournament.
College Projection
Jones is one of the top athletes in the state and brings a lot of upside to the next level. He finishes well around the rim and has a solid motor. However, he will need to continue to work on his ability to handle the basketball under pressure and shoot the basketball from deep. Jones is a solid on ball defender and can have plenty of success at the next level.
At this point, I see Jones fitting in at a mid NAIA or NCAA Division-II program.
Here are Koby Jones’ high school stats from this past season.