Winthrop veteran point guard Russell Jones Jr. enters the transfer portal
Russell Jones Jr. is looking for a new home.
The Winthrop junior point guard, who was affectionately known as the Eagles’ “one-man press-break” and brought a baseline-to-baseline energy that regularly sparked Winthrop runs, has entered the transfer portal.
A source with direct knowledge of the situation confirmed the news to The Herald on Monday morning, after it was first reported by Verbal Commits on Twitter.
The Blythewood native and former Westwood High School star finished his junior season in college averaging 4.5 points in 16.5 minutes per game.
Jones’ run at Winthrop
After picking up almost all the accolades one could in high school — he was a two-time All-State selection and the Class 4A Player of the Year as a senior — Jones came to Rock Hill in 2019.
He arrived as a key part of one of the most heralded freshman classes of the Pat Kelsey era — one that included Jones, Greenville native Chase Claxton and redshirt freshman transfer from Tennessee DJ Burns.
And the 5-foot-6 point guard impacted the program immediately.
As a freshman, he started eight games and averaged a career-high 7.3 points in 19.3 minutes a game en route to helping deliver Winthrop its first Big South championship in 2019-20 since 2017. It was this year when he earned his reputation for being the program’s energy-infuser, playing big minutes in some of the most significant moments in Winthrop history: In the Eagles’ historic road win over ranked Saint Mary’s, Jones played a near-team-high 28 minutes.
As a freshman, he drew comparisons to Keon Johnson, Winthrop’s all-time leading scorer. Johnson — who, too, was generously listed at 5-foot-6 — was an inspiring figure for Jones.
Jones told The Herald in an interview for a November 2018 story that “knowing that great, small guards came before me” was integral in his decision to come to Winthrop.
“I used to hate talking about my size, but you know, as I get older, I’m learning that it is the gift that God gave me,” Jones told The Herald at the time. “God didn’t make me 6-foot-8 or 6-10. He made me 5-6. But God blessed me with a talent at 5-6 to be able to play bigger than I am.”
Said Kelsey on the Johnson-Jones comparison in November 2018: “I have an affinity for those type of guys. I wasn’t near as good as either one of those guys, but I was little for Division I basketball. I walked into every gym and every practice feeling like I had to prove myself. And that’s what the Keon Johnsons and the Russell Joneses do every time they lace them up.”
As a sophomore, Jones continued to contribute. His playing time took a slight dip to 14.0 minutes per game, but that was mostly because Winthrop was one of a rare few to employ a 12-player rotation. That 2020-21 Winthrop team went 23-2, won a second-consecutive Big South tournament title and earned a 12 seed in the NCAA tournament — cementing itself as one of the best teams the Big South conference had ever seen.
In his junior season, after head coach Mark Prosser succeeded Kelsey as Winthrop’s head coach, Jones’ role fluctuated: There were games when he’d play 25 minutes, including in Winthrop’s overtime win over Mercer where Jones sparked a second-half comeback. There were also games when Jones would play 10-12 minutes.
Come the Big South tournament, Jones was Winthrop’s fourth guy off the bench. He played 11 minutes in Winthrop’s first-round win over High Point, six minutes in Winthrop’s win over Gardner-Webb and 11 minutes in the team’s lopsided loss to Longwood in the Big South championship game.
Jones is the only Winthrop player to enter the portal from Winthrop’s 2021-22 team as of Monday morning. In addition to him, the Eagles are saying farewell to graduate transfers Pat Good and Drew Buggs, who don’t have any remaining eligibility.
This story was originally published March 14, 2022 at 10:11 AM with the headline "Winthrop veteran point guard Russell Jones Jr. enters the transfer portal."
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