Duke Basketball will return point guard Tre Jones for his sophomore year. Having a veteran point guard in Jones will be a huge positive for the Blue Devils.
Tre Jones was left heartbroken after losing by one to Michigan State in the Elite Eight game. Jones was comforted and helped off the court by teammates after the loss.
If the Blue Devils would’ve won, they would’ve advanced to the Final Four in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Final Four would’ve been a homecoming event for the Apple Valley, Minnesota native.
Saturday night during the Final Four games Jones posted a cryptic message on Instagram. The post pictured Jones in a Duke jersey shrugging and caption “Year 2?” This post left Duke fans full of excitement at the possibility of Jones return. Jones was not finished getting Duke fans excited as he posted again on Sunday. This time Jones was sitting in front of his March Madness locker in the picture.
The Blue Devils official Twitter account announced Monday morning that Jones was officially returning for his sophomore season at Duke.
OFFICIAL: #️⃣3️⃣ in 2019-20 👇👇 pic.twitter.com/L98L6uFdqA
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) April 8, 2019
Jones will give the Blue Devils a veteran leader in the 2019-20 season at the point guard position. He averaged 9.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 5.3 assists in his freshman campaign.
Jones will have to shoulder more of the scoring load with R.J. Barrett announcing his decision to enter the 2019 NBA draft and fellow freshman Zion Williamson and Cam Reddish more than likely soon to follow.
Junior Marques Bolden is expected to enter his name into the 2019 NBA draft and at the very least receive feedback. The Blue Devils will have one of their more experienced rosters next season with many key players returning.
Jones will also find himself leading the talented incoming freshman class. The Blue Devils already have commitments in their 2019-20 class from five-star Vernon Carey, Boogie Ellis, and Wendell Moore. The Blue Devils are also awaiting five-star Matthew Hurt to make his decision on April 19th. Hurt is a stretch forward from Minnesota who is choosing between Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, and Kentucky.
Jones should thrive with all the experience and incoming freshman talent around him in the 2019-20 season. Jones return has catapulted the Blue Devils back to championship contenders for the upcoming season.