Shooting Guard Tuesdays: Remembering Fred Jones

For shooting guard Tuesdays, let’s take a trip down memory lane and look at a player who was incredibly exciting as an Indiana Pacer, Fred Jones.

Fred Jones was one of the most exciting players to ever put on a Pacers uniform. He was a freakish athlete and solid three-point shooter, one of the most exciting combinations of basketball players to watch. It was always fascinating to see him make plays like this in live action (especially on great defenders like Ben Wallace):

I was going to use this historical “shooting guard Tuesdays” piece to unearth some crazy stats about Reggie Miller, but given the news that Victor Oladipo will reportedly be participating in the 2017-18′ dunk contest, it felt like the perfect time to discuss Jones’ and his crazy dunking.

Jones offered a skill that doesn’t show up in the box score: excitement. When Jones throws down an emphatic dunk on Ben Wallace all the stat sheet shows is two points for Jones and the Pacers. But what doesn’t show up is the juice that his teammates get from that play. The impact of exciting plays is generally immeasurable, but those were the plays where Jones changed the game.

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You can sorta use stats to show how his invigorating plays put a jolt in the offense. In the 2003-04′ season, the Pacers offense had an offensive rating of 103.8. In the same season, Jones had an offensive rating of 107. Offensive rating is a stat the measures the number of points a team scores per 100 possessions, so the Pacers were basically three points better per 100 possessions when Jones played.

His electrifying plays clearly made the offense better. But those plays didn’t limit themselves to just dunks. He finished his career a 35.3 percent three-point shooter, a solid figure for the era he played in. His athleticism also allowed him to do other miraculous stuff, like fly up for some crazy blocks:

His defensive rating during his Pacers tenure was a solid 104, showing that Jones was good and freakishly Herculean on both ends of the floor.

But now, the good stuff. The reason Fred Jones has been so memorable for Pacers fans was his victory in the 2004 dunk contest. You can watch highlights of that event here, it still to this day is incredibly enjoyable.

Let’s hope Jones (and Glenn Robinson III) can be good omens for Oladipo in his dunk contest this season.

Next: No need to riot: Victor Oladipo makes his first All-Star Game

Fred Jones’ time in Indiana was short lived. Despite this, his exciting plays and dunk contest championship will make him a fan favorite for years to come. Let us not forget him.