Dontae' Antijuaine Jones (born June 2, 1975) 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, formerly of the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

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). Jones played college basketball at Northeast Mississippi Community College where he is the Tigers' all-time leading scorer, rebounder, and shot blocker. His #32 jersey has been retired by the school. After playing two seasons for the Tigers he transferred to the Mississippi State Bulldogs program to finish his college career. He was named

most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

of the 1996 SEC men's basketball tournament after leading Mississippi State to their first SEC Tournament championship by virtue of a win over top-ranked

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

in the SEC tournament championship game. That same season he led Mississippi State to the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four, picking up a Regional MVP honor along the way. Jones, along with his 1995–96 Bulldog teammates, was inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 2016. He was selected out of

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, Un ...

by the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

as the 21st overall pick in the

1996 NBA draft The 1996 NBA draft was the 50th NBA draft, draft in the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 26, 1996–97 NBA season, 1996, at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In this draft, NBA teams took turns s ...

but was traded, along with

Walter McCarty Walter Lee McCarty (born February 1, 1974) is an American basketball coach and former professional player who serves as the head coach of the Freseros de Irapuato in the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP). McCarty played for the NBA ...

, John Thomas and Scott Brooks, to the Celtics in exchange for Chris Mills shortly before the 1997–98 NBA season began (he had previously taken part in no games in 1996–97 with the Knicks due to a foot injury). After his NBA season, Jones played for the Memphis Houn'Dawgs in the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

(ABA), and in Greece, Turkey, Italy, Korea and China. An apostrophe was intentionally placed on the end of his first name by his mother for distinctiveness. As of November 2012 he has been working as the program director at the Nashville Youth Basketball Association (NYBA), which is designed to help all middle Tennessee-area and Nashville city youth in metro Nashville improve their basketball skills. He is a highly regarded youth coach.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Dontae' 1975 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Mexico American expatriate basketball people in South Korea American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American expatriate basketball people in Venezuela American men's basketball players Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters players Apollon Patras B.C. players ABA All-Star Game players S.S. Basket Napoli players Basketball players from Nashville, Tennessee Beijing Ducks players Boston Celtics players CBA All-Star Game players Halcones de Xalapa players Korean Basketball League players La Crosse Bobcats players Mississippi State Bulldogs men's basketball players New York Knicks draft picks Northeast Mississippi Tigers basketball players Small forwards Vaqueros de Bayamón basketball players Yunnan Bulls players Toros de Aragua players