Jones is proud to be part of that progress for Black sports executives and is hopeful for more. [32][33] Jones played in 51 games, starting 10, for the Heat during the season while averaging 3.6 points, 1.0 rebounds and 13.1 minutes per game. Now, there's some evidence to support that. Great GM, even better guy! Jones knew what he was doing! Jones joined the Suns front office in 2017 following 14 seasons as a player where he was a three-time NBA Champion and reached the NBA Finals in each of his final seven seasons. Lets wait and see how this Deandre Ayton situation unfolds. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images), (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images). Of course not! When it started to get close, it was one of those deals where I was like, holy smokes, like, this could be really good, Williams said of the Paul trade. But I also knew that having Chris was going to change things in the way that could allow for us to be in this position, just because of who he is and my experience with him before.. And so thats been my experience since Ive been here. At the start of the 2019-20 season, Jones and Williams were the only African American general manager-head coach duo in the league. Donnie Druin is the Publisher for All Cardinals and Inside The Suns. 8/10/21 Signed Elfrid Payton to a $2,239,544 minimum contract. Contract Terms: 1 yr(s) / $885,000 Signing Bonus - More than anything, its helped us appreciate every day. [9] He played in 75 games, starting 24, for the Suns during the 200506 season, averaging 9.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 23.6 minutes per game. Suns name James Jones general manager. I got credit for their works. 6/28/23 Chris Pauls $30,800,000 guarantees for 2023-24; 6/29/23 Cameron Paynes $6.5 million guarantees for 2023-24. You know what I mean? To end it didnt take the option on Jalen Smith, which PHO must be regretting already, as hopefully he will bolt in the summer for much more $$$ than PHO can ever offer him. All & all I think he has very much damaged the future of the team, upset his star (Ayton) just a bad GM if you ask me! I wouldnt put it past him to influence one more big decision before he walks away with a couple bill for his trouble. Jones was also healthy but on the inactive list ten games. Jones retired as a player after the 2016-17 season and was named the Suns vice president of basketball operations that summer. Note: Two-Way Contracts pay $462,629 for the full 2021-22 season, pro-rated based on in-season signing date. This bench truly carried them for a good chunk of the season as the starters were figuring things out. James Andrew Jones (born October 4, 1980) is an American professional basketball executive and former player. The question I ended with was how high it would take them. PF: Jae Crowder, Cameron Johnson, Jalen Smith [1] His cousin Mionsha Gay also played at the University of Miami. The Suns and Nuggets both need to prove something to themselves this postseason that they didn't achieve in the regular season. Its nice when you have a relationship like that because you can be honest no matter what, good or bad, you know youre going to shoot it to each other straight, and thats how its always been.. [39] LeBron James, Jones's teammate with the Heat, had asked him to come join him in Cleveland. share. [63][64] The Suns wound up making the 2021 NBA playoffs for the first time since 2010. [40] The Cavaliers won the Eastern Conference championship and advanced to the NBA Finals. SG:Devin Booker, Landry Shamet 9/14/21 No-aggregation restriction lifts on Landry Shamet. Paul was an NBA MVP candidate this season. [38] He was also one of twelve players nominated for the TwymanStokes Teammate of the Year Award, finishing tenth place in the voting. With Jimmy Butler hobbled late by an ankle injury, Miami gets big performances from Kyle Lowry and Kevin Love to take the series opener in New York. Suns' James Jones Ranked as Top NBA GM in Study