Prospecting: Why Baylor's Perry Jones III Is Considered 'Inconsistent'

Top NBA draft prospect Perry Jones had an inconsistent game against Kentucky yesterday, in the sense that he only played well in one half. In a defense of the Baylor forward, Rob Dauster summed it up this way:

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That right there is the issue with PJ3. Consistency. The kid has all the talent in the world, and he showcased it for 15 minutes in the second half before he fouled out of the game. He’s good enough to be some combination of Blake Griffin, Kevin Garnett and Dirk Nowitzki, yet there are elongated stretches of time where he is nonexistent. For every play that leaves you in awe, there is a point where you say to yourself, "wait, Jones is on the floor right now?" [Emphasis added.]

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Having watched Perry Jones throughout the year, I wonder if this really holds as a description. Because, “inconsistency” is subjective, often in the eye of the beholder. Perry Jones had a stretch of three games pre-tournament where he played consistently well against top talent. To be reductive with the stats, Jones had 31 and 11 against Kansas State, 18 and seven against Kansas, and 16 and 11 against Missouri. Then the tournament came, and he went into a four-game lull.

So, is this “inconsistency”? Does inconsistency manifest itself as volatility within a game? Is it going from stretches of great games to a multi-game slump? Is it alternating from great game to bad game, night after night? 

My thinking on this: I believe that Perry Jones is just as consistent as your average prospect. The problem with PJIII is that he was highly touted coming out of high school (partially due to wonderous mix-tapes of his dunks). It’s not often that a big man can so fluidly pull off a between-the-legs flush—it’s what a scout can dream on for eons.

But Jones doesn't really fit any particular mold as a 6'11" forward. He does not rebound or block shots like a big man, and he does not shoot like an ideal wing player at 30 percent from beyond the arc. So, the real issue with Perry Jones may not be that he’s “inconsistent.” His play is perhaps, just inconsistent with what scouts envisioned or hoped for. 

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