Just a few nights ago, Tevian Jones became the first and only former Illini to lead his team in scoring at the NBA 2K24 Summer League. He did so off the bench and with impressive efficiency, putting in 16 points in just 20 minutes, with perhaps the only nitpick being his lack of a block or steal despite being an active and willing defender on every possession.
In the New Orleans Pelicans’ final guaranteed game of the Summer League, Jones flipped the script. He may have struggled from the field but was completely dialed in on the other side of things. Additionally, Jones and the Pelicans quickly found out that an efficient 16-point performance from the bench would not be necessary. To begin the game, the Charlotte Hornets scored just two points in eight and a half minutes.
For most of that time, Jones was on the bench, but he added to the madness with a three of his own just before Charlotte’s second basket and capped off a 21-2 opening run. Jones stayed on the floor to start the second quarter but was subbed out after missing three shots and picking up a foul. He returned with just over 90 seconds remaining and missed two more attempts before the half. On Jones’ last miss of the half he recovered the offensive rebound, but New Orleans was not able to capitalize on the added possession.
It must have been halftime where Jones decided focusing on offense was no longer a priority, as in the second half he attempted no shots and diverted full attention to the defensive end. In less than five minutes, Jones netted two blocks and an intercepted pass. Jones’ first block was an impressive display of prowess where he pulled off one of the most difficult things to do on defense and got his hands on a three-point attempt. While his first came as far from out as possible, Jones’ second block was exacted on a layup attempt and showed off his defensive versatility even further.
The final quarter of the game saw about four minutes of Jones and during that time, he continued to not shoot and instead play stout defense, though this time around it did not amount to counting stats.
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On top of the aforementioned defensive plays, Jones finished the game with four rebounds to go along with the three points from his very first shot. His efforts added to an 89-83 win for the Pelicans, who moved to 3-1 while the Hornets dropped to 0-4. New Orleans is not scheduled to play in Saturday’s consolation games, so the next time Jones takes the floor will likely be on Sunday, which will not have an official schedule until Friday’s games are concluded.
@blountco21
