Duke basketball: NBA completely snubs a sensational Blue Devil

A Duke basketball face starred in Summer League yet got no love in the end.

Sure, the San Antonio Spurs finished 1-4 in this month’s NBA Summer League. Plus, Duke basketball treasure Tre Jones missed a game.

Still, the 6-foot-1, 185-pound floor general was crisp in almost every facet of his own game for the Spurs. Jones averaged 22.8 points, which wound up No. 2 among all the young NBA players who made at least four appearances in Las Vegas. He also finished inside the top 10 with his 6.3 assists per game.

Add in the fact that the former 2020 ACC Player and Defender of the Year was a highly efficient shooter in Summer League: 50.7 percent from the field, 36.4 percent from downtown, and 90.5 percent from the charity stripe. Furthermore, San Antonio probably would have ended up winless if not for last week’s clutch drive and finish from Jones against the Charlotte Hornets.

Not enough from the Duke basketball product?

Somehow, the NBA made no mention of Tre Jones on either the All-Summer League First Team or Second Team, which consisted of 12 names altogether.

But one Blue Devil — for those who still give that moniker to rookie forward Jalen Johnson — did land on the First Team after averaging 19.0 points and 9.5 boards in his four outings for the 2-3 Atlanta Hawks.

Jones was better.

Last season, after going No. 41 overall at the 2020 NBA Draft following a pair of brilliant campaigns as the starting point guard in Durham, Jones played in only 37 games for a Spurs squad that finished No. 10 in the Western Conference standings. Across 7.3 minutes per game of primarily mop-up duty, he averaged 2.5 points and 1.1 assists.

Now, the 21-year-old has one guaranteed year remaining on his contract and is looking to build on a promising summer performance — despite the snub.