To help readers get to know top NBA draft prospects, Insider offers a 360-degree look at many of them in a concise and thorough scouting report featuring three expert perspectives: Kevin Pelton (analytics), Fran Fraschilla (scouting) and Chad Ford (NBA front offices). Here's a look at Tyus Jones.
WARP Projection: 2.6 (fifth among players in top 100)
Comparables: Jordan Farmar (92.3), Jrue Holiday (92.1), Brandon Knight (91.9), Russell Westbrook (90.8)
Strengths: Shooting, assist percentage, personal foul percentage.
Weaknesses: Usage, 2-point percentage.
The analytics perspective
Tyus Jones has rated well by my statistics all season, even when scouts expected him to return for his sophomore year. Polished beyond his years as a playmaker, Jones posted an assist-to-turnover ratio near 3-to-1. He was an efficient scorer by virtue of 37.9 percent 3-point shooting and attempting more than four free throws per game, which he hit at an 88.9 percent clip.
There are some negatives in Jones' numbers. He's a below-average rebounder, and most star point guards excel on the glass in college. Jones also made just 44 percent of his 2-point attempts, which could become a real problem against NBA shot-blockers. Still, there's a strong statistical case that Jones should be the third-ranked point guard in the draft after D'Angelo Russell and Emmanuel Mudiay.
-- Kevin Pelton
The scouting perspective
If not for the focus on his fellow freshman teammates Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow, Tyus Jones could have been a first-team All-American. Instead, he settled for being the starting point guard on the national championship team.
The 6-foot-1 Jones, who won a Minnesota State 4A title in high school and three FIBA Gold medals as part of USA Basketball, is the ultimate winner with a nearly complete college-point-guard package. In fact, the word best used to describe him is "poised."
Playing as a freshman at Duke is challenging enough because of the bull's eye that the Blue Devils play with versus every opponent on the schedule. But while being a freshman point guard for Mike Krzyzewski comes with its own set of challenges, it's clear he met -- and probably exceeded -- his coach's high standards.
Jones, in fact, was at his best in Duke's biggest games this season. In games involving ranked and NCAA tournament opponents, he averaged 15.5 points on 47 percent shooting and 42 percent from behind the arc. And he passed for 74 assists in those games, versus only 24 turnovers. Jones' 23 points in the national championship game against Wisconsin earned him the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player Award.
The first thing that jumps out about Jones' game is his great vision and pinpoint passing ability. He makes long, lay-it-out-front passes in transition effortlessly. In the half-court, he moves the ball instinctively to the correct teammate without it sticking in his hands.
When I watch point guards on tape, I always like to rewind the play a couple of times to see what the player is seeing when he begins to make a play. I try to notice the point on the tape that he realizes his teammate is open. This is where Jones excels, because he is always thinking one move ahead of the defense.
Although not blessed with extraordinary quickness, Jones knows how to change speeds to keep defenders at bay. His ability to go from slow to fast allows him to beat defenders to the lane off the dribble.
Although Jones is involved in the pick-and-roll on only 18 percent of his offensive possessions, he is in the top 2 percent of efficiency in college basketball, according to Synergy.
And Jones improved his shooting at the rim as the season progressed, making 55.6 percent of those shots. He showed proficiency with his floater shots due to his good shooting touch and body balance. This is a must for a point guard of Jones' size.
Jones proved this season to be a good long-range shooter. He shot 38 percent from the 3-point line. Just as impressive is that his combination of poise and shooting ability make him seemingly impervious to pressure.
There are areas where Jones can certainly improve. He is not an explosive athlete, so he does not get into the lane as easily off the dribble against top defenders without the use of ball screens.
And that same lack of elite foot speed challenges him as a defender. Numerous times this season he has struggled to keep the ball in front of him. And while he was not Duke's only culprit in that area, it is a reason why Krzyzewski has utilized a zone more this season than in any year I can remember.
This lack of elite athleticism will be problematic at the NBA level if Jones cannot compensate. Given that his stock is at its highest and it is unlikely to get any better if he stays at Duke for his sophomore year, I understand why he is entering the draft now.
In Jones' favor are his age and potential for physical maturity, as he does not turn 19 years old until May. Combine that with all of the outstanding qualities he possesses at the moment and he is going to be drafted in the first round.
-- Fran Fraschilla
The front-office perspective
Jones was the top-rated point guard in the high school class of 2014, and he played like it all season at Duke. His uncanny floor vision, leadership and improved jumper all led to him becoming the MVP of the national title game. However, NBA scouts have never been crazy about Jones as an NBA prospect.
Despite the high-level basketball IQ and leadership, his lack of elite size, length or explosive athletic ability all lower his ceiling tremendously. If he were two to three inches taller or longer, or if he were a faster or more explosive athlete, he'd be a top-five pick in this draft. But given those physical limitations, teams are struggling to get excited about him.
"I want to love him," one GM said. "He's really, really good. His feel for the game is tremendous and now that his jump shot is falling, he's very difficult to guard. I'm just worried that given the size of so many elite point guards in our league and how great so many of them are athletically, whether he can keep up on either end of the floor. That was my concern last year with Tyler Ennis and he was bigger and more athletic. I just don't know when you take him."
The scouts I spoke with varied widely on Jones. A few considered him a late lottery pick. Most had him in the 17-to-25 range.
-- Chad Ford