By Antonis Stroggylakis/ info@eurohoops.net
About three minutes into the second quarter of Tuesday’s (20/1) EuroLeague game between Olympiacos Piraeus and Maccabi Tel Aviv, center Tyrique Jones produced what was to become the official No. 1 highlight of Round 23.
Tyson Ward drove toward the basket and noticed Jones also making a move in the same direction, ready to play the two-man offense. He threw the lob up high and his new teammate soared to catch the ball with his right hand way above the rim and bring it down for the slam in thunderous fashion.
The Reds crowd erupted in excitement, celebration and cheers which Jones thoroughly enjoyed. It was quite the contrast to the player’s previous fan experience during his last stretch with former team Partizan Belgrade.
Amid a streak of losing results and disappointing team outings, Jones was among the players that became convenient scapegoats for Partizan’s struggles, especially after the resignation of coach Zeljko Obradovic. Even when he was delivering some of his signature powerful, energetic and often spectacular plays on the floor, the reaction by fans in Belgrade was booing instead of cheers, jeering instead of applause.
There was a permanent cloud of negativity emmiting towards him, regardless of how he was actually performing and the effort he was putting on the floor.
“I have love for the fans that loved me over there. But certain situations happened,” Jones told Eurohoops after his EuroLeague debut with Olympiacos in the win over Maccabi. “Now I’m moving forward. There’s no bad blood. I don’t feel anything bad towards them [Partizan fans]. Things happened that needed to happen. Now, I’m moving forward. I’m going to learn from it and continue to be myself.”
Some Partizan supporters were accusing Jones of displaying an indifferent attitude and even claimed that the injuries that sidelined him in a couple of games were fake. After his last match with Partizan – a 25-point loss to Maccabi in late December – Jones had what appeared to be a heated interaction with some fans.
At this almost breaking point, the clock was just ticking for Jones’s exodus from Belgrade. Olympiacos was one of the multiple teams interested in acquiring the 28-year-old big man and the Greek powerhouse managed to secure his services with a multiyear contract.
Jones is now focused on leaving these past misadventures behind and channel his focus on the new high-aspiring challenges with the Olympiacos jersey.
“I just try to go out there and play basketball. I’m leaving what happened in the past to the past,” Jones said. “I’m not focusing on it. I’m here now. I’m trying to give my all to this club and to the guys in the locker room. Every time I go out there I just try to be the best version of Tyrique Jones that I can be.”
It’s not easy to join a EuroLeague team halfway through the season, adapt quickly to a variety of diverse and sometimes demanding systems, and smoothly click with your new teammates.
Jones named some players that have been of particular assistance to him in better understanding his role on the court, positioning during defensive actions and overall succesfuly executing the plans of the team on both ends.
“When I first got here, especially [Nikola] Milutinov talked to me,” Jones said. “He helped me run through the plays. Evan [Fournier] has been a huge help. But everybody has been guiding me and being helpful, on coverages and stuff like that. I can ask everyone on anything.”
“I don’t think anything has been too hard,” Jones also mentioned on his adjustment to Olympiacos. “Just making a little bit of mistakes. Defensive-wise, getting used to the principles. The guys on the roster and the coaches have been very helpful in helping me understand our coverages and what we’re trying to accomplish. Where I’m supposed to be, offensively and defensively.”
Jones spent just 6:20 on the floor vs. Maccabi but he made the most out of them. He scored 6 points, grabbed three rebounds and had two steals. Most importantly, perhaps, he brought a fire that helped turn a 12 – 18 deficit into a 35 – 30 lead before a storm of 20 unanswered points by Olympiacos.
“I’m just a basketball player man,” Jones said. “I love the game of basketball. Wherever I go, I try to adjust and bring energy to the game. That’s just who I am. And that’s what my performance was [tonight]: Bringing energy.”