Tre Jones’ brother, Tyus Jones, is a former Duke player and now plays in the NBA for the Minnesota Timberwolves. The two brothers talk daily, especially with their mother’s recent cancer diagnosis.
“I talk to him every day,” Tre told the News & Record. “We almost talk every day anyway, but especially now around this time of year, we’re talking all the time. It’s just for both of us, how big of competitors we are. We just do whatever we can for our team to win.”
Tyus played for the Blue Devils during the 2014-15 season before making the jump to the NBA. Tyus averaged 11.8 points, 5.6 assists and 1.5 steals during his season in Durham. Through four seasons with the Timberwolves, Tyus is averaging 4.9 points, 3.2 assists and a steal. Tyus noted he is proud of how his brother has handled his freshman season at Duke.
“I just told (Tre) to stick with it, take it one game at a time and kind of ride that momentum from the ACC tournament into the (NCAA) tournament,” Tyus explained to Twin Cities Pioneer Press. “He’s done a great job with the ups and downs of the season and continuing to work, continuing to try to improve and learn on the fly. He’s going to continue to do so into the tournament.”
Tyus credits their mother for raising a family of basketball players. Tyus and Tre’s parents both played basketball.
I would give a lot of credit to my mom [Debbie Jones],” Tyus explained to the Star Tribune. “Both of my parents [his father is Robert Jones] actually played basketball, but my mom has been our coach growing up all the way until we got to high school. I would give a lot of credit to her and also my older brother [Jadee Jones]. He is someone who has trained us and been in the gym numerous hours with us. I give my mom and my older brother a lot of credit.”
Tre Will Likely Join His Brother in the NBA
Tre is likely headed to the NBA to join his brother, but the question is when he will leave Duke. Tre projects to be a first-round pick in the upcoming draft which means he could follow in his brother’s footsteps playing just one season in Durham.
The current Duke team entered the season with lofty expectations thanks to the presence of Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish. Tre noted that watching his brother deal with similar expectations has helped him play this season with poise.
“There’s a lot of people expecting you to win every single game,” Tre told CBSSports.com. “But growing up behind Tyus, there’s always been an expectation of doing exactly what he did, because he’s been sensational at basketball. Ever since I was a young kid, it’s helped me play with a chip on my shoulder, and want it even more. It’s something I’m used to now. I’ve never been around something where there wasn’t that expectation of living up to my brother. With everything I’ve done as far as basketball goes, it’s been compared to my brother. He came before me.”
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