Senior Spotlight: Trey McKinney Jones
The Canes wrap uptheir regular season this week with a pair of home games against Georgia Tech(3/6) and Clemson (3/9). With five seniors on the roster, HurricaneSports.comis honoring a different one each day this week leading up to Senior Day onSaturday against Clemson. Today we chat with senior swingman Trey McKinney Jones
Trey McKinney Jones
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
9.1 ppg, .373 3-pt%, 3.5rpg
What is your favoritememory or moment as a Hurricane?
“My favorite memory is beating Duke earlier this year. I think we were ranked No. 25 and theywere No. 1. Beating the No. 1 team, and it being Duke, in our own conference,at home, and seeing everyone rushing the court, that was my best memory thusfar. Hopefully I have some biggerones later.”
What do you think ofhow your career has turned out?
“I am glad I made the decision to come here. Being at UMKC was hard for me. Thenwhen Coach Haith left, the coach that recruited me, I was kind of unsurebecause I did not play the previous year. Coach L had no film on me and I don’tthink he knew who I was, so I was kind of worried at first, but it turned outfor the best. I could not imaginea better person for the position and I am grateful. I think it was good for me, it made me work that much harderto prove myself on the court to show him that I deserve to play and get goodminutes and be a part of this program.”
Are you happy withyour legacy at Miami?
“I am, but it is not done yet. Hopefully we can finish off the season with a victory sothat is my ultimate goal.”
Could you have everimagined being in a position where you were a legitimate contender for anational championship?
“Honestly, just because of where I came from being that itwas mid major school, it never crossed my mind. For it to be a real possibility, this is kind of a surrealexperience and it means a lot.”
What do you think ofthe future for Miami Basketball?
“I think Coach L is going to keep moving up. He is a greatcoach and with the way we have played this year, this summer he will get a lotmore recruits. Tonye and Shane are his only two recruits. Everyone else was here before so whenhe gets his own kind of players and gets to coach them, he will continue torise.”
What do you hope todo in your future?
“Obviously I want to play basketball at the next level. Whatlevel that is, I am not sure yet. Right now, I am trying to concentrate ongetting the national championship and winning the ACC.”
Was playing pro ballalways a realistic goal for you or has that developed recently?
“It was always a goal of mine. I know I have a good chance of playing professionally atsome level, whether it is overseas or the NBA. Especially now with guys who play well from mid majorschools, if they play well, they get drafted or at least get a chance to playin the summer league or things like that. I was not going to be content with just playing college ball and thensitting down and working a nine to five.”
What do you think ofthe emergence of the basketball program? Does this feel more like a basketballschool now that it did when you got here?
“I think it is good for us. Now we are being looked at as awell-rounded school and not just a football school, but a basketball schooltoo. “
What was it like tosee LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and James Jones sitting courtside at the NorthCarolina game?
“It was great. It means a lot to me that they came and I know my teammates mentioned ita lot after the game. We look upto them, and for them to come and show support was big.”
What is somethingthat few people know about this team?
“Last year, we had to a run a mile in order to practicebefore the season started. Theguards had to make it in 5:45 and the bigs had to make it in six minutes. Just getting up at 5 a.m. to be on thetrack at 6 a.m., everyone was tired and did not want to be there, but I thinkthat is the hard work we had to put in to be where we are now.”
Was that anexperience that helped bring the team closer together?
“I think it definitely is. Conditioning is never fun. It brings out the worst inpeople. There would be times wherecertain people would not make the time, but some us would get out there and runit with them and it just brought us closer together.”
What is yourrelationship like with the coaches and the rest of the team?
“Everyone says this but I can honestly say we are likebrothers, like family. I have hadgood experiences at both schools, even at UMKC, but for me to come here andfeel that same kind of brotherhood and bonding between the players was important.”
What is the highlightof your career?
“The Michigan State game earlier this year when I hit fivethrees. To just help my team win the first big game of the season over a rankedopponent and see the fans rush the court, that was special. I think that was mybiggest game.”
What did the win overMichigan State do for the team?
“I think it gave us a lot of confidence as a team. We knewafter that game that we had something special and we can do some special thingsthis year. It put the past behindus. We had lost that exhibition game to St. Leo and the first game to FloridaGulf Coast. We knew people were doubting us. I feel like after that MichiganState game we were back on our feet and we knew we were going to have a specialseason.”
What has it been liketo help take this program all the way to No. 2 in the rankings?
“It has been crazy because I was a part of it the wholetime. We have improved so much as a team and as program as a whole, it has donea lot for us.”
What do you think ofthe opportunities you’ve had at Miami?
“I think it has been rare. Coach L gives everyone the sameopportunity. You have individual workouts before the season and everyone isimproving before the season. He is very fair. Going back to when he first got the job, I met with him andtold him I was maybe concerned there was no film on me and I would not get afair shot due to the players who played last year. I thought he might continuewith that lineup, but the first thing made sure to tell me was that nobody hada spot and that he was going to give everyone a fair chance.”
What was yourrecruitment like and how did you decide to attend Miami?
“I did not really play AAU and that is big in recruiting, soI was not highly recruited. I knew l was better than mid major, not thatanything is wrong with people playing at mid majors. I just wanted to play at amajor conference school. My lasttwo schools were Wisconsin and here and it was tough for me to turn downWisconsin because that is where I am from and Madison is like an hour and 15minutes from where I live. It would have been a perfect situation, I thought.But I prayed about it and I felt like playing in the ACC was the best thing forme. It is the conference most NBA players come from and it is more of a high-speedconference, so I felt like it had a lot to do with it. Coach Haith did a great job of sellingthe school and I liked him as a coach. Practicing under him for a year was a good experience for me becauseplaying at that level is different from playing at UMKC. The players are better so it took me ayear to get used to the changes in talent level. Then he left and having to prove myself again for Coach Lwas scary at first, but in the end it was definitely a better situation.”
How have youdeveloped under this coaching staff?
“I feel like I have developed a lot. Coaches like to work out with us afterpractice or during individual workouts. You get one on one attention and you work on the details of your gamethat need work and you can improve. Because of that, each player has improved in the last two years.”
Beyond basketball,what do you think of your time at Miami?
“It has been amazing. Just being in Miami, it is way different than Kansas City orMilwaukee. The weather is nice, alot better than those two. InMilwaukee, it was a snow day yesterday and Kansas City they got a lot of snow.The weather there has been crazy, so not to see snow for the past two or threeyears has been nice. My experienceas a whole, I could not ask for a better one. It has been perfect.”
What was it like tosee the students camp out and line up before the Duke game?
“It was crazy. I never experienced that and to just seepeople do that told us that we were on the map. I even went out there with afew of my teammates and we went through the line and shook everyone’s hands andtook pictures. I felt great seeingthat and I wanted to make sure they knew how important it was to us.”
What is something youknow now that you wish you would have known as a freshman?
“Just to trust your coaches. As a freshman, everyone wants to play, but you just have totrust your coach. They are here for a reason and they are the head coach for areason. They know what they are doing so if you have to, take a year or two tocome off the bench or play limited minutes. You just have to be ready to takeadvantage of that time and know in the back of your head that you are improvingand your coach wants what is best for the team.”
What does being aMiami Hurricane mean to you?
“It means the world. It is something that is going to stick with me for the rest of mylife. I am going to come back andsupport for every sport, but especially the basketball team. Kind of like when Warren Sapp or otherpeople come back to support, that is what I am going to continue to do.”
