Last summer, the Celtics tried to land Derrick Jones Jr. to bolster the team’s depth on the wing. Nearly one year later, they will be head-to-head with the Mavericks forward when the NBA Finals begin in Boston on Thursday night.
Jones Jr., a journeyman forward opted out of a $3.3 million player option with the Bulls last summer before opting to sign a minimum deal with the Mavericks. He’s outperformed that deal this year, earning a spot in the Mavericks starting five by averaging a career-high 8.6 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.
Before that productive campaign, Jones Jr. was looking for a chance to make a splash for a playoff team instead of dealing with an inconsistent role in Chicago.
“I could have accepted my player option in Chicago and still be on the team that’s not in the playoffs right now,” Jones Jr. told reporters in Dallas Sunday. “I just decided to bet on myself.
“I took less money to come here, but the money wasn’t the problem. The money wasn’t the issue. I just wanted to have the opportunity to be on the floor and to showcase what I’m able to do, and it happened for me.”
Jones Jr. also acknowledged on Sunday that the Celtics was the team he was considering back in August before he opted to sign in Dallas.
“Yeah, it is kind of funny,” Jones said. “But I’m just glad I made the decision that I did and I came here.”
Instead of backing up Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown on the wing, Jones Jr. will likely spend time on both All-Stars once the NBA Finals opens up on Thursday night. Tatum and Brown both excelled against Dallas in the regular season, shooting a collective 54 percent from the field.
“They’re good offensive players,” Jones said. “Like I said before with all the other series, you just got to keep them from their spots and try to limit them to the shots that they like to take.
“I’m just real happy that we’re still playing basketball. I really don’t care who we’re playing against. I just want to go out there and play and get wins.”
Jones Jr. is in line for a big raise this offseason once he gets a chance to hit the open market after the NBA Finals. His price range will likely depend to some degree on just how well he holds his own against Boston’s stars since Dallas will be reliant on him defensively with so few capable options on the wing.
Whether he can hold his own on that front remains to be seen but it’s hard to deny that he made the right decision for his career from an opportunity perspective. Regular playing time in Boston would have been hard to come by this year with the development of Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet. Whether he cost himself a chance at a ring will be determined in the coming weeks.
