West Virginia’s Kevin Jones made my list of guys who didn’t get drafted but should have been.
However, he is going to get a chance to make an NBA squad — the Cavaliers have signed him to a partially guaranteed deal, reports Adam Zagoria.
What that means is he will play Summer League and likely get a training camp invite, but he’ll have to earn his way on to the team. Depending what the Cavs see he could spend time in the D-League, but they are going to give Jones a chance. This is officially a three-year deal but don’t let that fool you, partially guaranteed means the Cavaliers can buy him out affordably at any point if he doesn’t pan out. If he does, they keep him at an affordable price.
Jones went undrafted because at 6’8” he’s a little small for the power forward spot in the NBA. That’s especially true because he did his damage in the post in college and that will be a lot harder for him in the NBA where the fours are much bigger and more athletic. But he’s got a huge wingspan, plays hard and has an outside shot. He led the Big East in scoring and rebounding.
This is a smart move by the Cavs, a good risk to take to see if he can be a role player.