Jonquel Jones
Jonquel Orthea Jones (born January 5, 1994) is a Bosnian and Bahamian professional basketball player with the Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was drafted with the 6th overall pick in the 2016 WNBA Draft.[1] Since May 2019[2], she also holds the citizenship of Bosnia and Herzegovina, allowing her to play for this national team.
 Jonquel Jones accepts the award for 2017 WNBA Most Improved Player | |
| No. 35 – Connecticut Sun | |
|---|---|
| Position | Power forward / Center |
| League | WNBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | January 5, 1994 Freeport, Bahamas |
| Nationality | Bosnian / Bahamian |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Riverdale Baptist School (Upper Marlboro, Maryland) |
| College |
|
| WNBA draft | 2016 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall |
| Selected by the Los Angeles Sparks | |
| Playing career | 2016–present |
| Career history | |
| 2016–present | Connecticut Sun |
| 2016–2017 | Asan Woori Bank Wibee |
| 2017–2018 | Shanxi Flame |
| 2018–present | UMMC Ekaterinburg |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at WNBA.com | |
A 6'6" power forward/center, Jones played college basketball for Clemson and George Washington.
Clemson and George Washington statistics
Source[3]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Points | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| 2012-13 | Clemson | 8 | 78 | 48.3% | 30.0% | 79.2% | 10.0 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 9.8 |
| 2013-14 | George Washington | 23 | 338 | 48.8% | 29.3% | 63.9% | 10.9 | 1.7 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 14.7 |
| 2014-15 | George Washington | 30 | 460 | 47.8% | 30.6% | 66.4% | 12.5 | 2.1 | 0.7 | 1.9 | 15.3 |
| 2015-16 | George Washington | 23 | 373 | 41.7% | 31.1% | 74.5% | 14.6 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 3.3 | 16.2 |
| Career | 84 | 1249 | 46.2% | 30.4% | 69.5% | 12.4 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 14.9 |
WNBA career
In 2016, Jones was acquired by the Connecticut Sun after having her draft rights traded by the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for Chelsea Gray and two draft picks.[4] In her rookie season, Jones was the backup center for the Sun. She averaged 6.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg and 1.1 bpg in 34 games with 6 starts.
In her second season, Jones became the starting center for the Sun. Jones had a breakout season in 2017 in her new starting role. After an 0–4 start, Jones led the Sun to their first win of the season, scoring 23 points along with 21 rebounds in a 97–79 win over the Chicago Sky, making her the 13th player in league history to record a 20-point, 20-rebound performance.[5] On July 8, 2017, the Sun made history as they completed the biggest comeback in franchise history after defeating the Washington Mystics 96–92 after overcoming a 22-point deficit as they improved to 10–7, Jones scored a team-high 22 points along with 9 rebounds in the win.[6] Jones was selected to the 2017 WNBA All-Star Game, her first career All-Star Game appearance. She finished the season averaging a double-double in points and rebounds and also averaged career-highs in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots, quickly emerging as one of the rising young stars in the league. She broke the single season record for rebounds, grabbing 403 rebounds in the 2017 season, breaking Tina Charles previous record of 398 (record was broken by Sylvia Fowles in 2018).[7] Jones would also win the 2017 WNBA Most Improved Player Award. Her breakout season performance, along with Jasmine Thomas and Alyssa Thomas both emerging as all-stars would lead the Sun back to the playoffs for the first time since 2012. They finished with a 21–13 record as the fourth seed in the league, receiving a bye to the second round elimination game. In her first career playoff game, Jones scored 19 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in an 88–83 loss to the number 5-seeded Phoenix Mercury.
In 2018, Jones would have a reduced role on the team despite her success from last season. She started in 16 of the 34 games played but would still effective for the Sun both in the starting lineup and off the bench. By the end of the season, Jones won the WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year award. The Sun made it back to the playoffs as the number 4 seed with a 21-13 record, receiving a bye to the second round. However the Sun would lose yet again to the Phoenix Mercury in the second round elimination game by a final score of 96-86.
In 2019, Jones would redeem her starting Center role for the whole season. She would lead the league in rebounds once again and averaged a career-high in blocks, steals and minutes by the end of the season. Jones was also voted into the 2019 WNBA All-Star Game, making it her second all-star appearance and would also make WNBA Second Team. The Sun were a championship contender in the league, finishing with a 23-11 record and the number 2 seed, receiving a double bye to the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, the Sun swept the Los Angeles Sparks 3-0 to advance to the WNBA Finals, making it the franchise's first finals appearance since 2005. The WNBA Finals series was a hard-fought battle, but the Sun fell to the Washington Mystics in five games.
In June of 2020, Jones announced that she would forgo the WNBA season due to concerns from the coronavirus.[8]
Overseas career
During the 2016–17 off-season, Jones signed with Asan Woori Bank Wibee of the Women's Korean Basketball League and won a championship with the team.[9] In October 2017, Jones signed with Shanxi Flame of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association for the 2017-18 off-season.[10] In August 2018, Jones signed with UMMC Ekaterinburg of the Russian League.[11]
National team career
She made her debut for the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the first round of EuroBasket Women 2021 qualification on 14 November 2019 against Russia.[12] She claimed a mammoth double-double of 29 points and 16 rebounds on what proved to be an agonizing night for Russia coach Alexander Kovalev as he lost his first game at the helm in his hometown of Orenburg.[13]
WNBA career statistics
| Legend | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career high | ° | League leader | ||||
 |
WNBA record |
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Connecticut | 34 | 6 | 14.1 | .531 | .333 | .739 | 3.7 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 6.8 |
| 2017 | Connecticut | 34 | 34 | 28.5 | .534 | .446 | .818 | 11.9 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 15.4 |
| 2018 | Connecticut | 34 | 16 | 20.5 | .550 | .467 | .671 | 5.5 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 11.8 |
| 2019 | Connecticut | 34 | 34 | 28.8 | .448 | .309 | .818 | 9.7° | 1.5 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 14.6 |
| Career | 4 years, 1 team | 136 | 90 | 23.0 | .509 | .385 | .780 | 7.7 | 1.3 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 1.5 | 12.1 |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Connecticut | 1 | 1 | 39.2 | .385 | .400 | .875 | 15.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 19.0 |
| 2018 | Connecticut | 1 | 1 | 26.2 | .667 | .000 | 1.000 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 13.0 |
| 2019 | Connecticut | 8 | 8 | 32.5 | .528 | .267 | .767 | 10.4 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 17.9 |
| Career | 3 years, 1 team | 10 | 10 | 32.7 | .523 | .270 | .795 | 10.5 | 2.5 | 0.5 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 17.5 |
References
- Wallace, Ava (June 25, 2017). "Jonquel Jones got tough through her travels, and she's taking it out on the WNBA". Washington Post. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
- "National Basketball Association of Bosnia-Herzegovina confirming Jonquel will play for their national team".
- "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved 2017-08-28.
- "SPARKS ACQUIRE CHELSEA GRAY FROM CONNECTICUT SUN IN EXCHANGE FOR THE DRAFT RIGHTS TO GUARD JONQUEL JONES AND 2017 FIRST ROUND PICK - Los Angeles Sparks". Los Angeles Sparks. Archived from the original on 2017-03-01. Retrieved 2017-09-10.
- "Jonquel Jones Starting to Show Unlimited Potential - WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved 2017-09-10.
- "Connecticut Sun make history in win over Washington Mystics". FOX 61. 2017-07-09. Retrieved 2017-09-10.
- "Jonquel Jones Sets WNBA Single-Season Rebound Record - WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved 2017-09-10.
- https://www.cbssports.com/wnba/news/wnba-2020-season-jonquel-jones-renee-montgomery-natasha-cloud-among-players-sitting-out/
- "Jonquel Jones leads her team to title win in Korea". Retrieved 2017-09-10.
- Jonquel Jonesto Join Flamein China During the Offseason
- Jonquel Jones joins UMMC Ekaterinburg
- "Russia v Bosnia and Herzegovina boxscore - FIBA Women's EuroBasket Qualifiers 2021 - 14 November". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
- "Serbia take down Turkey, Russia fail on a famous night for Bosnia and Herzegovina". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2019-11-15.