What can the Oklahoma City Thunder expect to see from Perry Jones III following his breakout performance?

The Oklahoma City Thunder are already without Kevin Durant, but now they will be without star point guard Russell Westbrook with a hand fracture. Perry Jones III came through with a huge game for the Thunder, and nearly was able to lead his team to a road win over the Los Angeles Clippers. It didn’t end up happening, but the Thunder didn’t fold without their two stars.

Now that Jones has had his NBA breakout game, what are the expectations moving forward for him?

Jones was a star player at Baylor back in his college days, but his draft stock slid in a big way due to a red flag that he received for a meniscus problem in his knee. He was one of the players with the most potential coming out of college, but injury problems are not something that teams usually touch. Oklahoma City wasn’t scared away, however, and it appears that he is finally coming into his own.

During his sophomore and final season at Baylor, Jones averaged 13.5 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. He shot 50 percent from the floor and 30.3 percent from the three-point line. Needless to say, he was a dominant offensive player and was expected to make a big impact in the NBA assuming his health problems didn’t flare up.

Last night he showed a confidence that he has not had throughout the first two years of his career. He nailed 10 of his 17 shot attempts, and showed an impressive three-point game as well at 3-6. Jones used his athleticism to get to the rim and draw 11 trips to the foul line, making nine of those attempts.

As you can see from the highlights, Jones is going to be a matchup nightmare for most defenders, due to his length and athletic ability. The Thunder don’t have anyone left on the roster with the scoring ability that Jones has, and they are going to be giving him the green light to put up shots and play his game.

Kevin Durant has obviously taken Jones under his wing and mentored him, and he will continue to do so throughout the year. Jones likely won’t ever get to the scoring level that Durant is on, but he has learned some things from him and there are obvious similarities in their games. Now the Thunder are in desperation mode without two of their franchise players, and Jones is going to be the number one option moving forward alongside of Serge Ibaka.

“I’m just glad we all fought and didn’t give up despite the injury. I don’t know why it’s going on, but all we can do is play our hearts out and keep fighting until everybody gets back.” – Perry Jones III

Being just 23 years of age in his third NBA season is something that will help him as well. He has the youth to be able to play a lot of minutes, but also has some experience from watching the game from the sideline and playing on and off throughout his first two years. The question then become, can he keep up the big performances with defenses trying to lock him down?

Quite simply, he can do whatever he sets his mind to on the offensive end of the court. He will have to get used to getting bumped around a bit more by defenses, but there aren’t many players that can defend him and shut him down. His athletic ability and length, along with the tricks that he has learned from Durant and his own personal arsenal are too dangerous.

He will finally have his chance to prove that he belongs in the NBA, and that he shouldn’t have been passed over by so many teams in the NBA Draft. Assuming he stays aggressive and confident, there isn’t anything that can hold him back but himself. Oklahoma City has a budding star in Jones, and they need to make sure to get him involved early and often now that his role has increased as dramatically as it has.

There is still some talent alongside of Jones on the court in Ibaka, Sebastian Telfair, Reggie Jackson, Steven Adams, Nick Collison, and Jeremy Lamb is expected to be back at some point in the near future. Jones is still going to be the go-to option with Ibaka and Jackson until Westbrook and Durant return to the court.

It’s going to be a difficult test, but Jones is ready to step up and prove his full potential. Expect to see him continue having big performances and take advantage of this situation.