Recruiting Report: Ross Jones (2017)
2017 Friends School of Baltimore (MD) PG Ross Jones continues to rise among prospects this summer headed into his senior year. The 6-1 point guard even rose within the ranks of his summer team Baltimore United as he was promoted…
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Continue Reading2017 Friends School of Baltimore (MD) PG Ross Jones continues to rise among prospects this summer headed into his senior year.
The 6-1 point guard even rose within the ranks of his summer team Baltimore United as he was promoted over the season from the Black to Gold team.
High points for Jones this summer occurred early on acquiring his first Division I offer from Navy to start the season while also grabbing one from D-2 Merrimack College.
Alongside these two offers to date, the point guard is also receiving interest currently from two offer D-1 schools: Farleigh Dickinson and NJIT.
The success this summer comes off of what Jones calls “one of [his] best high school seasons” at the Friends School.
“It went pretty well. I matured, and I feel like I found myself as far as a ball player.”
The point guard described his role on the team as being a “leader, scorer, defender, and the coach on the court.”
This summer Jones was able to see time with both Baltimore United teams which allowed him to fit and mold himself into two roles: a scoring threat and a facilitator.
“I started out with Baltimore United Black which is the non-showcase team. It’s the regular circuit team, playing AAU and regular showcase tournaments. Towards the end of the summer, I ended up playing with the [Baltimore United] Gold team which is the showcase team that plays on the Under Armor Circuit. So my initial role on the first team was similar to what I do in high school which is being the coach-on-the-court; the leader; the voice; the scorer; a little bit of everything,” said Jones. “Then, when I moved up, I played with more talent, but I really just took the leadership role, not necessarily having to score as much. I was more of a facilitator. I was the player that could get everybody going.”
According to the Baltimore United player, what really stands out in his game is his “grittiness” and “ability to play hard.”
The point guard also described his preferred shot to PHM.
“I like to shoot open set three’s, but I don’t really shoot three’s off the dribble. I’m mainly mid-range. I like to dribble and pull up, so that’s most of my game. That’s pretty much where I live.”
With the summer season drawing to a close and preparation resuming for his next season with the Friends School, Jones says that he will mainly focus on improving areas of his game specific to being a top point guard.
“I always want to improve on my handle and my jump shot. I’ve been shooting the ball pretty well, but I’m not where I want to be. With my handle, I feel as a point guard it’s very essential for what you want to do on the court as far as controlling the ball and controlling the game. Those are my two big things and defending as well. I mean what good is it to be great on offense but not be able to defend your position.”
A good defensive point from a point guard that will have potentially more D-1 attention headed into his senior campaign.