CCSU freshman basketball player James Jones grew up in New Britain and was raised in a sports family, playing in many New Britain-based leagues. He played middle school basketball at HALS Academy in New Britain, and played football for the New Britain Jr. Hurricanes from the age of five until he entered high school.
Once he finished middle school, he left the city to attend East Catholic High School in Manchester, Connecticut. He said that the basketball program was calling his name, and that it all worked out in the long run.
“I ended up having success there while still having the support of my city,” he said. “It was a win-win.”
At East Catholic, he was a back-to-back high school state champion in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons.
In his senior year, Jones was named the 2022–23 MaxPreps Connecticut High School Basketball Player of the Year. He led the Eagles to a 27-1 record while averaging 16 points, eight rebounds, and six assists per game, capping the season off with a state title.
Even though Jones was already highly decorated, he said there was still more work that he needed to put in. He decided to do a post-graduate year at Worcester Academy in Massachusetts, where he was an All-NEPSAC honorable mention selection in his single season.
Jones said that taking a post-grad year helped him work on his body to prepare him for the next level. He said that he gained about 15 pounds during the prep year, and that it helped to play against bigger and stronger players.
Jones said there was a point in time where he still wasn’t getting much recognition, and he saw some of his peers get closer to his goal.
“I felt like there was just a long time where I had no offers and watched everyone else get them,” he said. “But you kind of just have to run your own race, take it one day at a time and just keep working.”
Even though Jones is from New Britain, it was more than just location that made CCSU feel like home to him.
“Great coaching staff, great guys, great culture here,” he said. “The style of play adapts to any pro league that you would go to.”
Central head coach Patrick Sellers said he is excited to have Jones on his team, adding that Jones was an athlete he followed closely since becoming the head coach of the Blue Devils in 2021.
Sellers said that Jones’s high IQ attracted his game to him, along with his variety of skills that will help him play many roles for the Blue Devils.
“You can play him almost anywhere,” Sellers said. “He is tough, physical, he’ll rebound, he can guard one through four, and he can play point guard because he can really see the floor with his height.”
Jones is a big believer in always putting the team before himself, and it was no different when he talked about his goals and what he wants to accomplish at CCSU.
“I don’t really try to set personal goals,” Jones said. “I feel like if I just set team goals like trying to win and you just do everything you can, everything else just comes with that.”
After all of the stops he has made around New England, Jones gets to showcase all of his hard work throughout the years back at the city he grew up in, and he explained what it meant to him.
“It means a lot,” Jones said. “I actually never really got the chance to play for my hometown after middle school, so it’s actually just a blessing, honestly.”
