Duke Star Tre Jones Declares for 2020 NBA Draft and the Boston Celtics Need to Select Him

After a sensational sophomore campaign that was unfortunately cut short due to the scourge of COVID-19, Tre Jones isn't dragging his heels. As the Duke Blue Devils star confirmed to ESPN on Saturday, he's skipping his final two years of college eligibility and heading to the NBA.

While not considered a lottery-level prospect, Jones has a lot to offer at the professional level. And when the back end of the first round arrives, the Boston Celtics should leap at the opportunity to select him.

Considering who and what Jones is, the dude just screams Boston. He's a bit undersized, but he's tough. He can affect a game without dominating the ball thanks to his plus passing and capable defense. He's not out here trying to draw a ton of attention to himself.

He's coming to the NBA to work. And considering that Boston won't be able to ride Kemba Walker forever, Tre makes for an intriguing long-term successor that wouldn't dare try to cut any corners.

The 2020 ACC Player of the Year, the younger brother of the Grizzlies' Tyus Jones dropped 16 points and 6.4 rebounds per game under Coach K this season, and knocked in his 3-point attempts at an encouraging 36% clip.

He shouldn't be expected to ball out from day one on an NBA court, but when it comes to sneaky value at the end of the first round of the draft, Jones' fit with Brad Stevens and the C's is an intriguing one. In a 2020 class that's admittedly flush with point guards, there's no reason for Danny Ainge not to pull the trigger on Jones if and when he falls to them.