C.J. Jones

[ballinhog]

I read somewhere a while back where he shot 60% from three last year in high school. I know he's supposed to be a great shooter and he hit 14-28 from deep in that overseas trip, but does anyone know if that stat is accurate?

I hope this guy puts in the work and is coachable because it seems like his potential is through the roof. Very excited about him. I could see him being the leading scorer in a few games this year.

[navyhog24]

This kid might be the steal of the class

[The_Iceman]

This kid might be the steal of the class

Late bloomer for sure. Grew and filled out before a lot of bigger programs could notice. I know Tennessee tried to come in late. Mike's relationship with him helped us land the steal. Gonna be a good 4 year player for us. Can shoot and is athletic. Just needs to work on ball handling and defense.

[Razorod]

Really like his potential and the fact that he's 6-5. Makes for a nice 3rd guard in a three-guard line-up. He, Glasper, Garland, Hall, Sills, Joe, maybe Moss or the guard from Minnesota, plus Hill in 2019.

Should be a nice backcourt for years to come.

[Biggus Piggus]

He averaged 28 ppg as a senior in high school. They played a number of games against good private schools from around the country. Fer real.

[PonderinHog]

Look, I've never seen CJ Jones play, but did Scotty Thurman just walk back through that door?  Relatively unheard of, 6' 5" ish gunslinger, maybe not the best defender, etc...

I'm trying to not get my hopes up (liar), but I am ready to find out.

WPS!  It's time for some Hawgball, folks!   :razorback: :razorback: :razorback:

[Hawg Red]

Great offensive player, by all accounts. Sounds like the coaches are trying to get him there defensively. I'm trying not to let myself get carried away with his potential. It's tough. There's a lot to like. He absolutely outgrew that Chattanooga offer. I think it's fair to say we should probably be looking at this kid as if he were a 4-star/top 150 recruit because I think that's more in line with his true talent level.

Am I getting carried away?

[Big Nasty 34]

Great offensive player, by all accounts. Sounds like the coaches are trying to get him there defensively. I'm trying not to let myself get carried away with his potential. It's tough. There's a lot to like. He absolutely outgrew that Chattanooga offer. I think it's fair to say we should probably be looking at this kid as if he were a 4-star/top 150 recruit because I think that's more in line with his true talent level.

Am I getting carried away?

The great thing is, he won't be pressed into duty like years past. He can come in and contribute with little to no pressure to be "the guy." Now, hopefully he is happy with his role and doesn't transfer like previous guys in his position.

[FineAsSwine]

Great offensive player, by all accounts. Sounds like the coaches are trying to get him there defensively. I'm trying not to let myself get carried away with his potential. It's tough. There's a lot to like. He absolutely outgrew that Chattanooga offer. I think it's fair to say we should probably be looking at this kid as if he were a 4-star/top 150 recruit because I think that's more in line with his true talent level.

Am I getting carried away?

You are usually the pragmatic one so, i  don't think so.

[PonderinHog]

Great offensive player, by all accounts. Sounds like the coaches are trying to get him there defensively. I'm trying not to let myself get carried away with his potential. It's tough. There's a lot to like. He absolutely outgrew that Chattanooga offer. I think it's fair to say we should probably be looking at this kid as if he were a 4-star/top 150 recruit because I think that's more in line with his true talent level.

Am I getting carried away?

Oh crap!

[Razorod]

The great thing is, he won't be pressed into duty like years past. He can come in and contribute with little to no pressure to be "the guy." Now, hopefully he is happy with his role and doesn't transfer like previous guys in his position.

Hopefully, the fact that Manny and Dusty are seniors, Barford, Macon and Beard are juniors, and the fact that we've only got one guard in the '17 class will helps Jones see that plenty of minutes are in store for him.

[PonderinHog]

Hopefully, the fact that Manny and Dusty are seniors, Barford, Macon and Beard are juniors, and the fact that we've only got one guard in the '17 class will helps Jones see that plenty of minutes are in store for him.

If he can score, he'll play.  JMO

[Little Lady Back]

Really excited to see him play!! WooPig :razorback: :razorback: :razorback:

[The_Iceman]

Hopefully, the fact that Manny and Dusty are seniors, Barford, Macon and Beard are juniors, and the fact that we've only got one guard in the '17 class will helps Jones see that plenty of minutes are in store for him.

We'll, future playing time couldn't have been more  evident to Nick Babb and you see what happened to him.

[FineAsSwine]

We'll, future playing time couldn't have been more  evident to Nick Babb and you see what happened to him.

I am going to keep an eye on him at Iowa State this year. He should be pretty good after a year off to work on his game. Also will keep tabs on Austin Reeves to see what contributions he makes at Wichita State. Hope he has a good year.

[Hawg Red]

I am going to keep an eye on him at Iowa State this year. He should be pretty good after a year off to work on his game. Also will keep tabs on Austin Reeves to see what contributions he makes at Wichita State. Hope he has a good year.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/sports/college/iowa-state/basketball-mens/2016/10/12/nick-weiler-babb-iowa-state-cyclones-steve-prohm/91960926/

Looks like he's changed his name to Nick Weiler-Babb, and his coach says he has the most NBA potential on the team.

On the Austin Reaves front, a shoulder injury derailed his summer and is still a concern for the Shockers. Not sure what to expect from him this season.

http://goshockers.com/news/2016/10/13/mens-basketball-quotables-basketball-media-day.aspx

[Biggus Piggus]

Nick Babb's inability to get playing time on that 2014-15 Arkansas team remains a mystery.

He scored points in six games that season. In 26 appearances, Babb played 1-3 minutes 14 times. Babb played more than 10 minutes in three different games. One was Iona - 2 pts, 4 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl. One was Utah Valley - 2 pts, 3 reb, 1 stl. One was Georgia in the friggin' SECT - 5 pts, 3 ast.

It was a complete waste of a freshman season. The kid had obvious physical talent. Will never understand how all that went down.

Our guard rotation was Madden, Beard, Bell, Durham, Watkins. Qualls was a guard-forward type on the wing. We had Alandise Harris and Jacorey Williams playing the four. Qualls really had no backup. That swingman role might have been great for Babb in time. He looked uncomfortable in the offense, never shot well and passed up shots.

Or maybe Babb should have been the understudy for Madden, the big point guard.

We can't afford to recruit talent like that and then have to replace 'em the next season.

[PonderinHog]

And then we did it again last year.  And can't even remember the kid's name.   

[The Hogfather]

And then we did it again last year.  And can't even remember the kid's name.   

Jimmy Whitt!

Biggus is right.  We can't keep spending years recruiting/developing talent like Whitt/Babb and then send them off to other schools.  Whatever has gone wrong, we must fix.  Recruiting is looking outstanding right now.  Just have to make sure we keep them here.

I think part of it is the overall culture of college athletics nowadays, especially college basketball.  However, these were guys that either had plenty of playing time or would be getting plenty of playing time if they stayed.  Usually, guys transfer because of a lack of playing time.

[navyhog24]

MA doesn't give the freshmen many minutes. He gives the playing time to the experienced guys. They may not necessarily be more talented, but they're more experienced. He will have to change his ways in the future to keep the future kids around. Unfortunately, it's the way the world of college athletics works nowadays.

[King Kong]

MA doesn't give the freshmen many minutes. He gives the playing time to the experienced guys. They may not necessarily be more talented, but they're more experienced. He will have to change his ways in the future to keep the future kids around. Unfortunately, it's the way the world of college athletics works nowadays.

Not 100% true. Players that are good enough get time. Portis and BJ being the best examples. Beard and Jimmy Whitt also got good mins compared the NCAA as a whole

[Biggus Piggus]

MA doesn't give the freshmen many minutes. He gives the playing time to the experienced guys. They may not necessarily be more talented, but they're more experienced. He will have to change his ways in the future to keep the future kids around. Unfortunately, it's the way the world of college athletics works nowadays.

2014-15, Anton Beard played 19 minutes per game.

2015-16, Jimmy Whitt played 17 minutes per game.

[mbgrulz]

First time I've seen CJ live. He is a good looking player. Longer and taller than I thought he'd be. He has a SWEET stroke and will be a good scorer for us. He missed a couple open 3's, but he hit some nice mid range shots. You can tell his 3's will go down more than not by the way he shoots it. He elevates really high when he shoots, which is a good thing. He sat a good stretch in the first half because we needed our experienced guys to get us some separation from cmu. My guess is he'll continue to get backup guard minutes and have 1 or 2 20 point games this year. Has a great shot at starting alongside Barford and Macon next year.

[ShadowHawg]

Nick Babb's inability to get playing time on that 2014-15 Arkansas team remains a mystery.

He scored points in six games that season. In 26 appearances, Babb played 1-3 minutes 14 times. Babb played more than 10 minutes in three different games. One was Iona - 2 pts, 4 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl. One was Utah Valley - 2 pts, 3 reb, 1 stl. One was Georgia in the friggin' SECT - 5 pts, 3 ast.

It was a complete waste of a freshman season. The kid had obvious physical talent. Will never understand how all that went down.

Our guard rotation was Madden, Beard, Bell, Durham, Watkins. Qualls was a guard-forward type on the wing. We had Alandise Harris and Jacorey Williams playing the four. Qualls really had no backup. That swingman role might have been great for Babb in time. He looked uncomfortable in the offense, never shot well and passed up shots.

Or maybe Babb should have been the understudy for Madden, the big point guard.

We can't afford to recruit talent like that and then have to replace 'em the next season.

You never know what is going on in the background. The Babb situation is one where both parties seemed dissatisfied. MA didn't play him much and Babb transferred. Babb may not have liked his teammates. He may not have liked the coaches. Not everyone likes the conditioning that MA requires. There are a number of reasons things don't work out that aren't indicative of serious issues. Especially when it is frosh who are transferring. If it were upperclassmen, then that would be a real indication of a program in disarray.

[Letsroll1200]

First time I've seen CJ live. He is a good looking player. Longer and taller than I thought he'd be. He has a SWEET stroke and will be a good scorer for us. He missed a couple open 3's, but he hit some nice mid range shots. You can tell his 3's will go down more than not by the way he shoots it. He elevates really high when he shoots, which is a good thing. He sat a good stretch in the first half because we needed our experienced guys to get us some separation from cmu. My guess is he'll continue to get backup guard minutes and have 1 or 2 20 point games this year. Has a great shot at starting alongside Barford and Macon next year.

How does he compare to Bell from last year?

[mbgrulz]

Way different players. Jones will be an all-around player, where Bell was more of a specialist. Jones won't ever match AB's ability to shoot, but that doesn't mean he won't be good. He will be much more impactful in the other areas. He's way longer and a much better athlete than AB. The thing with CJ is that we have to understand that he's not a McDonalds AA. He will be good now, really good next year and maybe an all league player in year 3 and 4.

[Biggus Piggus]

I hope last night's 3-point offense and defense wasn't a commentary on what kind of perimeter defense Arkansas is playing in practices. Against an opponent that plays conventional man-to-man, the Hogs shot terribly from 3-pt range and gave up a too-high %.

[1hawgballer2]

Really like his potential and the fact that he's 6-5. Makes for a nice 3rd guard in a three-guard line-up. He, Glasper, Garland, Hall, Sills, Joe, maybe Moss or the guard from Minnesota, plus Hill in 2019.

Should be a nice backcourt for years to come.

I remembered reading an article that captured comments from his high school coach, that said he is projected to grow couple more inches. I understand he is being groomed to play the 3slot and some 2.

[rude1]

Nick Babb's inability to get playing time on that 2014-15 Arkansas team remains a mystery.

He scored points in six games that season. In 26 appearances, Babb played 1-3 minutes 14 times. Babb played more than 10 minutes in three different games. One was Iona - 2 pts, 4 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl. One was Utah Valley - 2 pts, 3 reb, 1 stl. One was Georgia in the friggin' SECT - 5 pts, 3 ast.

It was a complete waste of a freshman season. The kid had obvious physical talent. Will never understand how all that went down.

Our guard rotation was Madden, Beard, Bell, Durham, Watkins. Qualls was a guard-forward type on the wing. We had Alandise Harris and Jacorey Williams playing the four. Qualls really had no backup. That swingman role might have been great for Babb in time. He looked uncomfortable in the offense, never shot well and passed up shots.

Or maybe Babb should have been the understudy for Madden, the big point guard.

We can't afford to recruit talent like that and then have to replace 'em the next season.

What was even more bizarre about that situation is that CMA would talk him up like he was ready to take on more, then the games would come and the kid wouldn't see the floor. I still don't understand what that was about, unless CMA thought he was motivating the kid?

[1hawgballer2]

If he can score, he'll play.  JMO

Reply:
You've omitted Gasper the red shirt of this season to go along with Jones. I remembered reading an article from Jones high school coach stating CJ was predicted to grow another 2"(6'7).  Regardless I believe Mike is grooming both Jones and Bailey as 3's in addition to Jones playing the 2 when Mike is trying to get  bigger in his lineup. As it relates to our future incoming players I don't think we are going to miss any of these seniors except for the one intangible the experience they bring

[Big Nasty 34]

Reply:
You've omitted Gasper the red shirt of this season to go along with Jones. I remembered reading an article from Jones high school coach stating CJ was predicted to grow another 2"(6'7).  Regardless I believe Mike is grooming both Jones and Bailey as 3's in addition to Jones playing the 2 when Mike is trying to get  bigger in his lineup. As it relates to our future incoming players I don't think we are going to miss any of these seniors except for the one intangible the experience they bring

I don't know if we're to the point to say we won't miss 2 of the best scorers in the SEC. I hope you are right, though, because we will be a legit top 15 team.