SEC Spotlight The Latest Surreal Stop On Shawn Jones Jr.’s Journey
October 15, 2025 | Men's Basketball, Joel Coleman
Bulldog senior has gone from walk-on to team leader for MSU.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – About the only thing brighter than the lights all over the place at the Southeastern Conference's Basketball Tipoff event on Wednesday was the smile across the face of Shawn Jones Jr.
The Mississippi State senior guard was beaming.
"I'm shocked just looking around," Jones shared. "I'm having the time of my life right now."
Jones was the proverbial kid in a candy store as he zigged and zagged his way back and forth from room to room taking pictures, speaking with the league's media partners and rubbing shoulders with some of the very best players on SEC rosters.
"I never even thought about having the chance to experience all this," Jones said.
Few, if any, could've possibly foreseen this moment for Jones four years ago. It was just the latest surreal stop on Jones' inspirational, sensational journey.
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Jones' path Wednesday's SEC interview stages certainly wasn't a typical one.
Rewind about half a decade. The Houston, Texas, native originally committed to play basketball at Texas State.
But as MSU head coach Chris Jans was piecing together his first-ever Bulldog roster ahead of the 2022-23 season, he had a spot. Jans watched tape on Jones and chatted with others that'd seen Jones play. State assistant David Anwar was key in the process, believing Jones was indeed an SEC-caliber player.
MSU provided an opportunity. Jones jumped at it.
"He came in really as a glorified walk-on," Jans said. "We didn't really have high expectations for him as a freshman, but he ended up playing. Then he just totally bought into working on his game. He bought into our culture."
On a team full of talent – a roster featuring names like Tolu Smith III, D.J. Jeffries and Cameron Matthews – Jones found an early role. He played in 24 games that freshman year and laid the groundwork for all that his since occurred.
"I was a walk-on, but that didn't bother me," Jones said. "I didn't think about anything any differently. I just wanted a chance to play basketball, and I had that at Mississippi State.
"Coach Anwar and Coach Jans, they accepted me with open arms. They told me what they needed from me and what they expected in this program. I just embraced it all full-on and tried to take advantage of it."
And take advantage of it he has.
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Jones' efforts through the years enabled him to waltz around Wednesday's festivities at the Grand Bohemian Hotel as one of the most accomplished players ever at Mississippi State, at least from a team standpoint. He's one of only nine Bulldogs in history to see action on three different NCAA Tournament squads.
Jones of course had a direct hand in all three of those trips to the big dance.
Sometimes it was with his unmatched energy on the court. It was with his tenacity on defense, or with a thunderous dunk or key trey on the offensive end.
Other times, Jones' work was more subtle.
"He's just always been a glue guy for us, and it's been that way ever since I've been here," MSU All-SEC guard Josh Hubbard said of Jones. "I just have so much respect for him.
"He puts in the work every day. He respects the game. He doesn't complain if he doesn't score in double figures. He just wants to do the dirty work and do whatever it takes so we can win. That tells you what kind of person he is."
Jones is unselfish. For him, the name on the front of the jersey is always more important than the name on the back.
Again, you see that in games, but what you don't see is what happens in locker rooms or practices or in times away from basketball.
Jayden Epps sees it. Epps is one of 11 newcomers to State's team this season, but Jones didn't treat the transfer from Georgetown like a newbie. Instead, Jones embraced him like family.
"Since I got to Starkville, Shawn has been one of the ones I've hung around the most," Epps said. "He took it upon himself to show me around. He told me places where I need to go.
"I even went back home with him on a break we had back during the summer. He's such a good dude. He's a genuine dude. He didn't have to take me under his wing like that."
He didn't have to, but he did. Because that's just who Shawn Jones is. He's a winner on the hardwood and in life. At the core, that's what pushed Jones from unheralded freshman to the front lines of the SEC's big preseason parade in four years' time.
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What a ride it has been for Jones. And it's not over.
MSU's Mr. Energy is ready to make a run at his fourth NCAA Tournament. He wants to help deliver that to the head coach that took him in and gave him his big chance four years ago.
"Jans is just an unbelievable coach and an unbelievable human being," Jones said. "With him, all this is bigger than him just being a coach. When I'm going through things in my personal life, he's always there. He's one call away.
"Then, he knows how to get the very best out of you on the court. And he knows how to get you ready for life after the basketball world. He's just one of the best coaches I've ever had in my life, and he's just believed in me."
Jones wants to reward Jans, but he also wants to keep delivering winning basketball to the Maroon and White faithful that embraced him from day one.
"As time goes on, I just find more and more love for Mississippi State," Jones said. "The people, the campus, the students, the community – it's just a great place to be.
"It's a place, when you're here, the people are going to make sure you feel love and feel welcome."
Maybe that's a big part of the reason Jones has been such a perfect fit as a Bulldog. What Mississippi State stands for, Jones embodies.
Grit and toughness when duty calls. Love and care for those around you. That's who Shawn Jones Jr. is, and that's why, against all odds, he made his way to the SEC's bright lights.
"All this has showed me how your hard work pays off," Jones said.
