Redrafting the 2015 NBA Draft: Role players everywhere
By Corey Rausch
#23 Pick: Tyus Jones (Originally: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson)
Brooklyn traded back into the first round, swapping Mason Plumlee and the forty-first pick for Steve Blake and this pick. For a team who had just lost in the first round of the playoffs and was looking down the barrel of a rebuild with no first round picks to their name the desperation is palpable.
Tyus Jones is my selection here as I think he is still rather underrated and given an opportunity could be a strong contributor to any team. Deron Williams was waived by the Nets weeks after the draft so the need for a point guard is definitely there.
Jones was never given much of a chance in Minnesota, specifically in the Tom Thibodeau years. Once Ryan Saunders took over Jones finally started getting more than 20 minutes per game and saw his numbers increase to 6.9 points and 4.8 assists.
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Moving to Memphis to back up rookie star Ja Morant has seen him climb again to 7.4 points and 4.4 minutes in less minutes per game. He is a solid three-point shooter and a decent defensive player. Memphis is the perfect fit for him currently but giving him a chance in Brooklyn when they were looking for any sort of prospects is logical.
Rather than rolling with Jarrett Jack and Shane Larkin during their down period, they could have taken a shot on Jones. Kenny Atkinson would have done so much more for him than Thibodeau ever considered doing.
With the 24th pick in the 2015 NBA Redraft the Minnesota Timberwolves select…