2012 NBA Draft Grades: Rockets Select Terrence Jones

Pick 18: Houston Rockets
Selection: Terrence Jones

Bryan Rosa – A Royal Pain

Houston AGAIN!?!? The plan to trade up didn’t exactly pan out, so now stuck with three picks in the 12-18 range, the Rockets have had plenty of good talent to pick from. They were probably hoping Tyler Zeller would fall one more spot, but, alas, he didn’t so they’re going to have to be happy with Terrence Jones and it’s hard to imagine they’re not. The 6’9 combo forward has fantastic leaping ability with great explosiveness, making him a versatile athletic threat. He is a bit of a ‘tweener’ which might have scared a few teams away, but the Rockets added another solid piece to their already nice draft. Needs to add some size and work on his footwork, but outside of that, a very solid pick for Houston.

Grade: B

Bryan Wendland-Roberto Gato

I was getting tired of hearing “with the ____ pick in the 2012 NBA draft, the Houston Rockets Select:”. Well they don’t have any more picks, and with their last one, they got a steal. Jones’ numbers slid off this season, but no one at Kentucky had great offensive numbers. He’s one of the most athletic players in the draft, he’s got a good offensive game, and he’s a hound defensively. He can rebound, he can pass and he’s more mature than a lot of the guys taken so far. Jones will have himself a nice NBA career.

Grade: A

Jack Winter-Saving the Skyhook

Jones was considered a potential number one overall pick early in his college career after a stellar performance at the 2010 Maui Invitational, but took a backseat to talents like Brandon Knight, Anthony Davis, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist as his time at Kentucky wore on. He was closer to a supporting player than a star for the Wildcats during their championship season, averaging 12.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game on 50% shooting. He’s got big time versatility as a hybrid forward capable of scoring from the post and wing, and should eventually be able to defend 3s and 4s equally well, too. Jones has potential, too, an ever-important trait for a potential trade chip, something that no doubt made him attractive to Houston.

Grade: B+

Quixem Ramirez- Air Alamo

Jones has a ridiculous 7’2″ wingspan, providing Houston with a lot of positional flexibility. Suffice to say, I have no idea where Houston is going with this. Jones is yet another asset that Darrly Morey loves to collect.

Grade: B