Damon Darron Jones (born August 25, 1979) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player who played most of his career for the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). A

combo guard A combo guard is a basketball player who combines the attributes of a point guard (1) and shooting guard (2), but does not necessarily fit the standard description of either position. In men's basketball, such guards are usually within the 6' 3" ...

, he played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for three years with the

University of Houston The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...

Cougars before declaring early for the 1997 NBA draft, but he went

undrafted In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. After his playing career ended, Jones joined the Cavaliers coaching staff.

Early life

Jones played for the Ball High School Golden Tornadoes basketball team. He went on to the University of Houston after his graduation in 1994.

Professional career

journeyman A journeyman is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that field as a fully qualified employee ...

throughout his career, Jones never played for the same team for more than one season except for 2005–2008, when he played for the Cleveland Cavaliers. In his career, he played for ten different teams. Jones was most notable for his ability to make three-point field goals. In fact, three-point attempts made up the majority of his field goal attempts because his role was often to wait on the outside while teammates such as

Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), commonly known as Shaq ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. He is a and Center (basketball), center ...

Dwyane Wade Dwyane Tyrone Wade Jr. ( or , born January 17, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who is currently the co-owner of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association. He is also currently the host of the American a ...

, or

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. ( ; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is the NBA's all-time leading scorer and ...

forced double teams. Jones was supremely confident of his shot, once proclaiming that he is "the best shooter in the world."

Early career

Jones played for the Idaho Stampede of the

Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA), originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association, was a men's professional basketball m ...

(CBA) during the 1998–99 season. He was selected as the CBA Newcomer of the Year and named to the All-CBA First Team.

2004–2005

Prior to the 2004–2005 season, Jones signed a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

. Jones then proceeded to have the best statistical season of his career, setting career highs in games started (66), minutes played (2,576), field goals made (331) and attempted (726), field goal percentage (45.6%), three-point field goals made (225) and attempted (521), three-point field goal percentage (43.2%), free throws made (68) and attempted (86), rebounds (231), steals (44), blocked shots (5) and points scored (955).Damon Jones Profile
/ref> His 225 three-point field goals made was third best in the NBA (and at the time, tied with Mitch Richmond for the ninth most ever in an NBA season) and his three-point field goal percentage was fifth best that season.Damon Jones Bio
Jones had a career-high 31 points on February 16, 2005, against the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

and scored in double figures on 48 occasions. He also had his only game with two blocked shots on March 10, 2005, against the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

. Jones grabbed a career-high eight rebounds on November 6, 2004, against the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

, a mark he tied on February 22, 2005, against the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

.Damon Jones 2004-2005 Game Log
/ref> In 15 playoff games, Jones averaged 12.1 points and 4.0 assists, and shot 42.9% from three-point range. He had a career playoff high of 30 points with seven three-point field goals made in Miami's first game of the first round against the

New Jersey Nets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

. Jones scored in double digits during 10 of Miami's 15 playoff games.

Cleveland Cavaliers: 2005–2008

Jones departed the Heat to sign a four-year contract worth a reported $16.1 million with the

on September 8, 2005. In 82 games played (seven starts) during the 2005–06 regular season, Jones averaged 6.7 points and 2.1 assists per game. He shot 37.7% from three-point range. On November 13, 2006, he had a season-high 22 points on a season-high 5 three-point field goals. Jones hit five three-point field goals on four other occasions.Damon Jones 2005-2006 Game Log
/ref> On March 8, 2006, Jones hit a game-winning three-point field goal as time expired in a 98–97 victory against the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

. In the 2006 NBA Playoffs, Jones played in 13 games, averaged 1.8 points and hit 27.8% of his three-pointers. He had a playoff high 8 points in a game four Eastern Conference Semifinal win against the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

. On May 5, 2006, Jones came off the bench late in Game 6 of the Cavs' Eastern Conference first-round series against the Washington Wizards. In his first minute of the game action, in overtime, he hit the game-winning shot to clinch the series four games to two, and sent the Cavs into the second round of the

NBA playoffs The NBA playoffs is the annual Playoffs, postseason Tournament#Knockout tournaments, tournament of the National Basketball Association (NBA) held to determine the league champion. Since 1949, the four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held afte ...

for the first time since 1993. In 60 games played during the 2006–2007 regular season, Jones averaged 6.6 points and 1.6 assists per game. He shot 38.5% from three-point range. On November 13, 2006, he had a season-high 29 points on a season-high 7 three-point field goals.Damon Jones 2006-2007 Game Log
/ref> Jones was selected to participate in the

Three-Point Shootout The Three-Point Contest is a National Basketball Association (NBA) contest held on the Saturday before the annual All-Star Game as part of All-Star weekend. The 2019 iteration of the contest involved ten participants. From its introduction in 1 ...

during the 2007 All-Star Weekend in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

. Jones finished in fifth place. In the 2007 NBA Playoffs, Jones played in 11 games, averaged 2.4 points and hit 31.8% of his three-pointers. He had a playoff high 9 points on three three-point field goals in a game one NBA Final loss to the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

. Jones played in 68 regular season games (three starts) for the Cavaliers. He averaged 6.4 points and 1.9 assists and shot 41.7% from three-point range. Jones had a season-high 27 points on a season-high seven three-point field goals in a February 22, 2008, short-handed Cavs victory over the

. In five playoff games, Jones scored six total points and dished one assist. On December 28, 2007, it was revealed that the Cavaliers fined Jones and Ira Newble an undisclosed amount of money for refusing to come off the bench during the final minute of their Christmas Day win over the Miami Heat.

2008–2009

On August 13, 2008, Jones was traded to the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

in a three-team, six-player deal involving the Bucks, the

, and the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

that also sent Milwaukee's Mo Williams to Cleveland, Cleveland's Joe Smith and Milwaukee's Desmond Mason to Oklahoma City, and Oklahoma City's Luke Ridnour and Adrian Griffin to Milwaukee.

2010

On March 29, 2010, Jones signed with the

Piratas de Quebradillas ''Piratas'' () is a Spanish adventure drama television series with comedy elements created by Carlos Portela and which stars Óscar Jaenada, Pilar Rubio and Silvia Abascal. It aired on Telecinco in 2011. Premise Set in the 18th century, the fi ...

of the Puerto Rico Basketball League. However, on April 13 he was released, after averaging only 10.7 points in four games played.

2011

In February 2011, he signed with Aliağa Petkim in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, but didn't pass the physical fitness test and was released.

2012

After a stint with the Reno Bighorns of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

(NBA D-League), Jones retired from playing in 2012.

Coaching career

In 2014, Jones became a part of the coaching staff for the

with the title of "shooting consultant," working with both the Cavaliers and their NBADL affiliate the Canton Charge. During the 2015–16 season, Jones served as an assistant coach with the Charge. In April 2016, Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue added Jones to his coaching staff for the 2016 NBA Playoffs. The Cavaliers went on to win the championships over the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

in seven games, being the first team to overcome a 3–1 deficit. In September 2016, Jones was promoted to the full-time role of assistant coach for the Cavaliers. In March 2018, Cavaliers shooting guard J.R. Smith threw a bowl of soup at Jones and was suspended for one game by the team.

Records, milestones and rankings

*Ranked third in the NBA in three-point field goals made (225) in 2004–2005. *Ranked 5th in the NBA in three-point field goal percentage (43.2%) in 2004–2005. *Led the NBA in "True Shooting Percentage" (62.5%) in 2004–2005.

Personal life

*Jones majored in sociology at the University of Houston. *On January 10, 2006, Jones became the first NBA player to sign with a Chinese shoe company when he signed a two-year contract with Li-Ning. *Damon Jones has a child with Former WNBA star and

Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's bask ...

Tina Thompson.Comets' Thompson to Miss Part of Season
, February 4, 2005

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, 13 , , 0 , , 16.4 , , .387 , , .455 , , .750 , , 2.4 , , 2.2 , , .5 , , .0 , , 5.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 13 , , 1 , , 15.1 , , .463 , , .478 , , .778 , , 1.2 , , 3.0 , , .5 , , .0 , , 5.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 42 , , 0 , , 9.9 , , .357 , , .330 , , .641 , , .9 , , 1.4 , , .3 , , .0 , , 3.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, 71 , , 10 , , 19.9 , , .409 , , .364 , , .712 , , 1.7 , , 3.2 , , .5 , , .0 , , 6.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

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Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

, 49 , , 1 , , 14.5 , , .381 , , .364 , , .741 , , 1.4 , , 1.6 , , .4 , , .1 , , 4.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, 82 , , 26 , , 24.6 , , .401 , , .359 , , .764 , , 2.1 , , 5.8 , , .4 , , .0 , , 7.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, 82 , , 66 , , 31.4 , , .456 , , .432 , , .791 , , 2.8 , , 4.3 , , .5 , , .1 , , 11.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, style="background:#cfecec;", 82* , , 7 , , 25.5 , , .387 , , .377 , , .640 , , 1.6 , , 2.1 , , .5 , , .0 , , 6.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 60 , , 0 , , 19.6 , , .386 , , .385 , , .682 , , 1.1 , , 1.6 , , .3 , , .0 , , 6.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 67 , , 3 , , 19.9 , , .416 , , .417 , , .714 , , 1.1 , , 1.9 , , .3 , , .0 , , 6.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 18 , , 0 , , 6.0 , , .324 , , .393 , , .000 , , .3 , , .4 , , .2 , , .0 , , 1.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 657 , , 114 , , 20.5 , , .407 , , .390 , , .727 , , 1.6 , , 2.7 , , .4 , , .0 , , 6.6

Playoffs

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, 10 , , 0 , , 18.1 , , .381 , , .296 , , .750 , , 2.1 , , 2.5 , , .5 , , .0 , , 4.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

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, 5 , , 5 , , 28.8 , , .529 , , .476 , , .667 , , 4.0 , , 7.4 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

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, 15 , , 15 , , 33.2 , , .481 , , .429 , , .600 , , 2.7 , , 4.0 , , .5 , , .0 , , 12.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

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, 13 , , 0 , , 13.9 , , .308 , , .278 , , .750 , , 1.2 , , .9 , , .2 , , .0 , , 1.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

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2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

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, 5 , , 0 , , 5.2 , , .200 , , .286 , , .000 , , .0 , , .2 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 59 , , 20 , , 19.8 , , .427 , , .382 , , .660 , , 1.8 , , 2.5 , , .3 , , .0 , , 5.6

Notes

External links

*
NBA D-League profileOfficial websiteCareer
at Eurobasket.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Damon 1976 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Venezuela American men's basketball players Basketball coaches from Texas Basketball players from Texas Boston Celtics players Cleveland Cavaliers players Dallas Mavericks players Detroit Pistons players Golden State Warriors players Houston Cougars men's basketball players Miami Heat players Milwaukee Bucks players New Jersey Nets players Piratas de Quebradillas players Point guards Reno Bighorns players Sacramento Kings players Shooting guards Sportspeople from Galveston, Texas Undrafted NBA players Vancouver Grizzlies players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen