Duke basketball: Four reasons Tre Jones slipped to the second round

Why Duke basketball’s Tre Jones fell in the draft: MEASUREMENTS

It starts with the physical tools. If Tre Jones was 6-foot-5 or taller, there is no doubt he would have gone in the top five. He is probably considered undersized for NBA standards at around 6-foot-2, 6-foot-3.

Around NBA Draft season, “wingspan” is everyone’s favorite buzzword. All the analysts and so-called experts love to obsess over the length of players’ arms.

Then you have to look at athleticism. Jones was definitely not a high-flying athlete at Duke. I think he might have only had one or two dunks, but he did record a 40-inch max vertical jump.

To go high in the draft, it is all about creating hype. The best way to create hype around yourself is through highlight videos. If you watch some of the highlights of this year’s top draft picks, they are impressive. The guys selected at the top of the draft all look spectacular in their highlights.

Jones does not have the high-flying dunks, the ankle-breaking moves, or the flashy passes. He is not a highlight player, in that he is not going to have many plays on SportsCenter that create buzz. But he did test well in the vertical jump, penetrated the defense whenever he wanted, and averaged over 5.8 assists across two years in college.