While nearly the entire nation has diverted its attention away from men's college basketball now that March Madness has ended, last week there were two Ball State basketball players trying their best to recapture the attention of a group of potential employers -- NBA scouts.
Lonnie Jones and Petie Jackson both participated in the Portsmouth Invitational April 3-6 in Portsmouth, Va. The invitational was devised to give graduating college basketball players one last opportunity to be seen by NBA and other league scouts.
In competition, Jones played 26 minutes in his first game for Freedom Automotive. The 7-footer led his team in scoring with 14 points while tallying eight rebounds and a team-best two blocks.
In his second day, Jones wasn't as successful in scoring, with five points. The center remained strong on the boards with six rebounds while swatting away a team-high five blocks in 28 minutes of play.
Ball State head coach Tim Buckley said he made the trip to Portsmouth to cheer on both of his former players.
"Lonnie came out in his first game and played really well," Buckley said. "He played really solidly throughout the tournament."
Like Buckley, Jones was pleased with the outcome of the tournament.
"It was fun," Jones said. "It was a good chance to play against the top seniors in the country. I did pretty well. A lot of people told me a I played a lot better than I was expected to play."
Amid all of the Portsmouth hype, Jones has officially signed Don Gibson of XL Sports in Los Angeles, Ca., as his agent.
"First of all, he is a terrific kid," Gibson said. "He has an outstanding perspective and a positive attitude. People really like his potential and his ability to play the inside game.
Gibson emphasized how important it will be to add some weight onto Jones' frame.
"He's got the frame that will take an easy 20-25 pounds. With hope in the next two to three months he can add about 15 pounds to his frame."
Gibson said he spoke to representatives from the Utah Jazz who said they had "interest in Lonnie's size, length mobility and capability to play in the middle."
He said the Memphis Grizzlies, New York Knicks and L.A. Clippers have also shown interest in Jones.
As for Jackson, the point guard scored four points on two of four field goals in his first day of 22 minutes playing time. In that time he also accumulated two assists, one rebound and one steal while turning the ball over one time. In his second game, Jackson knocked in four points and racked up four assists, three rebounds and two steals. In his second game, Jackson had zero turnovers in 24 minutes.
"Patrick went down there in more of a point-guard role," Buckley said. "He was very efficient. He did a nice job of leading his team."
Ironically it was Jackson's team, Sales Systems, that defeated and eliminated Jones' team, Freedom Automotive, on Thursday with a score of 71-55.
Jackson's team advanced to the final day of competition where Jackson started, had five points, four assists, one steal and two rebounds in an errorless 17 minutes of play.
Buckley explained that when it comes to actually getting looked at by NBA scouts, he thinks Jones has better chances.
"I think Lonnie has the greater opportunity because of his size," Buckley said. "He is a specialist. He blocks shots. I think he has the chance to go to Chicago pre-draft camp."
Buckley said the invitations for the pre-draft camp don't usually go out until the second week of May.
"For Patrick, I think he has a longer shot because the number of guards there," Buckley said. "He certainly didn't hurt himself going down there, though. He represented himself and Ball State University very well."
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