4-Star Big Man, Future Engineer Damian Jones (2013) Commits to Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings landed his first prospect in the 2013 class on Sunday, a big pick-up for the program in both stature and significance.
Baton Rouge center Damian Jones verbally committed to Stallings and Vanderbilt following his visit to the school over the weekend. Jones had an official visit scheduled for Stanford on September 15, but decided earlier this morning he had made up his mind.
Jones had received interest from a slew of high-major programs including several top-flight academic institutions. Stanford, Georgetown and Florida had all courted Jones, but he ultimately settled on Vanderbilt because, in his mind, it offered the best blend of academics and a congenial coaching staff.
Some prospects insincerely cite academics as a key reason for choosing one school over another, but with Jones, the interest in and commitment to academics was genuine. The Louisiana native is an aspiring electrical engineer who views basketball as a hobby on the side. While most college hoops hopefuls spend hours in the gym during the summer months, Jones interned with Exxon Mobil over his summer this year.
The 6-foot-10, 215-pound post prospect is an AAU teammate of Julius Randle, the top power forward in the class. Together, Jones and Randle have formed a lethal one-two punch inside that has elevated the Texas Titans as one of the premiere summer ball teams in the land.
Vanderbilt has a trio of wing players in the 2012 class entering the picture this season, but the school had been remiss in finding an adequate replacement for departing senior center Festus Ezeli. Redshirt sophomore Josh Henderson, a 6-foot-11 center, will be counted upon to hold down the fort next season until Jones crashes the campus in the fall of 2013.
By that point, the Commodores will not only have replaced their band-aid solution down low with a more projectable big laced with upside and shot-blocking prowess. Vanderbilt will also be able to tout one of the few true student-athletes remaining in college basketball.