Men's basketball

Representing the United States
FIBA Americas U18 Championship
Gold	2014 United States	National team
FIBA World U17 Championship
Gold	2012 Lithuania	National team
FIBA Americas U16 Championship
Gold	2011 Mexico	National team

Tyus Robert Jones (born May 10, 1996) is an American professional basketball player. He plays for the Orlando Magic in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Tyus is the older brother of another NBA player, Tre Jones.

Tyus played for his hometown team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, for four seasons. After that, he joined the Memphis Grizzlies in 2019. He played four seasons with the Grizzlies before being traded to the Washington Wizards. He played one season there and then signed with the Phoenix Suns in 2024. He joined the Orlando Magic in 2025.

Before turning pro, Tyus played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils. He was part of the team that won the National Championship in the 2014–15 season.

Tyus was considered one of the top 10 high school basketball players in the country in 2014. He won a state championship with Apple Valley High School. He was also named Minnesota's Player of the Year multiple times. He played in several important high school all-star games. These included the 2014 McDonald's All-American Boys Game and the 2014 Jordan Brand Classic.

At Duke, Tyus was named the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player. This was after Duke won the championship game in 2015. After this success, he decided to enter the 2015 NBA draft. The Cleveland Cavaliers picked him 24th overall. They then traded him to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Tyus is known for his amazing assist-to-turnover ratio. This means he makes a lot of assists without losing the ball often. He has set NBA records for this statistic multiple times.

High School Basketball Journey

Tyus Jones started playing varsity basketball for Apple Valley High School when he was just in eighth grade. This was during the 2009–10 season. He quickly became a key player, averaging 16.8 points and 8.1 assists per game. He started every game for his team.

Freshman Year Highlights

As a freshman, Tyus received his first scholarship offer from Iowa. He averaged 20.1 points, 7.1 assists, and 2.6 steals per game. He missed seven weeks that season due to a kidney injury.

After his freshman year, Tyus was invited to try out for the USA Basketball team. This team would compete in the FIBA Americas Under-16 Championship. He made the team, and Team USA won the tournament. By this time, many top colleges were interested in him.

Sophomore Season Success

In his sophomore year, Tyus was named Minnesota's Associated Press Player of the Year. He also won the Minnesota Boys Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year award. His Apple Valley team played well but was stopped in the section finals.

Tyus averaged 28 points and 8 assists per game that season. After the season, he played for Team USA again. They competed in the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Championship in Lithuania. The team won all eight of their games and took home the championship.

Junior Year Achievements

Tyus started his junior season as the top-ranked basketball player in his class by ESPN. He was also named one of 10 preseason All-USA selections by USA Today. He led Apple Valley to the MSHSL Class 4A championship.

He shared the Minnesota Associated Press Player of the Year award with another talented junior, Reid Travis. Tyus also won his second Minnesota Boys Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year award. By this time, he had narrowed down his college choices to seven top schools.

Senior Season and College Choice

In his senior year, Tyus was still one of the top players in the country. He was often talked about as a "package deal" with fellow top recruit Jahlil Okafor. This meant they wanted to go to the same college together.

On November 15, 2013, Tyus announced his commitment to Duke University on ESPNU. He chose Duke along with Jahlil Okafor. This was a big moment in college basketball recruiting. Later, Justise Winslow and Grayson Allen also committed to Duke. This made Duke's recruiting class the best in the nation.

In a nationally televised game, Tyus's Apple Valley team played against Okafor's Whitney Young team. Okafor's team won, but Tyus had an impressive 29 points. His high school career ended when Apple Valley lost in double overtime in the section championship.

Jones (right) and Justise Winslow (left) at the 2014 Jordan Brand Classic

Tyus continued to shine in all-star games after his senior season. He won the skills competition at the McDonald's All-American Game. He also had a double-double (scoring and assists) in the Jordan Brand Classic.

High School Awards and Honors

Tyus received many awards and honors during his high school career:

Selected for the 2014 Nike Hoop Summit.
Chosen for the 2014 2014 McDonald's All-American Boys Game.
Selected for the 2014 Jordan Brand Classic.
Won Associated Press Co-Player of the Year in Minnesota.
Named Minnesota Mr. Basketball in 2014.
Won his third straight Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year Award.
Named to the 2014 USA Today second team All-USA Boys Basketball Team.

College Basketball at Duke

Tyus Jones joined the Duke Blue Devils for his freshman season. He was expected to be the starting point guard. He was named to several preseason All-American teams.

Jones meeting President Barack Obama with Duke teammates in 2015

He started his first college game with 15 points and 7 assists. In a big game against #2 Wisconsin, Tyus led Duke to a win with 22 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. He earned ACC Rookie of the Week for this performance.

Tyus tied his career high with 22 points in two games in January. One of these was when Coach Mike Krzyzewski earned his 1000th career victory. In a rivalry game against North Carolina, Tyus scored 22 points and had 8 assists and 7 rebounds. He was the first player in that rivalry to achieve those stats since 1983.

After the season, Tyus was named to the All-ACC third team. He was also part of the All-ACC Freshman first team. The Associated Press also recognized him as an honorable mention All-American.

Tyus was named the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player in the 2015 NCAA Tournament. He scored 23 points in the championship game, helping Duke win the title. After this amazing season, Tyus decided to enter the 2015 NBA draft.

Professional Basketball Career

Minnesota Timberwolves (2015–2019)

The Cleveland Cavaliers drafted Tyus Jones with the 24th pick in the 2015 NBA draft. They then traded his draft rights to his hometown team, the Minnesota Timberwolves. He signed his first NBA contract on July 7, 2015.

Jones during the 2015 NBA Summer League

Tyus made his NBA debut on November 10, 2015. He later spent some time with the Idaho Stampede, a D-League team. He was called back to the Timberwolves in December.

In 2016, Tyus was named the MVP of the 2016 NBA Summer League. He continued to improve with the Timberwolves. On April 12, 2017, he set a career high with 16 assists in a game.

Jones with the Timberwolves in 2016

During the 2017–18 season, Tyus got more playing time when the starting point guard was injured. On November 26, 2017, he had a career-high seven steals in his first NBA start.

On December 17, 2018, Tyus recorded his first "double-double" in the NBA. This meant he had at least 10 points and 10 assists in one game. He finished the 2018–19 season with an NBA record for the best assist-to-turnover ratio (6.96).

Memphis Grizzlies (2019–2023)

On July 11, 2019, Tyus signed a three-year contract with the Memphis Grizzlies. He continued to lead the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio for the 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons.

On February 1, 2021, he set a new career high with 14 assists. In the 2021–22 season, he broke his own assist-to-turnover record with a ratio of 7.04. The Grizzlies played very well when their star player, Ja Morant, was out. Tyus started 23 of those 25 games.

On July 6, 2022, Tyus re-signed with the Grizzlies for two more years. On March 17, 2023, he achieved his first NBA "triple-double." This means he had at least 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in one game. He led the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio for the fifth season in a row.

Washington Wizards (2023–2024)

On June 22, 2023, the Grizzlies traded Tyus to the Washington Wizards. This was part of a big trade involving three teams. On December 15, Tyus recorded his second career triple-double. On February 27, 2024, he set a new career high with 17 assists. He led the league in assist-to-turnover ratio for a sixth straight season, this time as a full-time starter.

Phoenix Suns (2024–2025)

On July 30, 2024, Tyus signed with the Phoenix Suns. He chose the Suns because he wanted to play for a team that could compete for a championship. In his first game with the Suns on October 23, he had eight assists with no turnovers. This was a great start for him with his new team.

Orlando Magic (2025–present)

On July 6, 2025, Tyus Jones signed with the Orlando Magic.

Career Statistics

NBA Regular Season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2015–16	Minnesota	37	0	15.5	.359	.302	.718	1.3	2.9	.8	.1	4.2
2016–17	Minnesota	60	0	12.9	.414	.356	.767	1.1	2.6	.8	.1	3.5
2017–18	Minnesota	82*	11	17.9	.457	.349	.877	1.6	2.8	1.2	.1	5.1
2018–19	Minnesota	68	23	22.9	.415	.317	.841	2.0	4.8	1.2	.1	6.9
2019–20	Memphis	65	6	19.0	.459	.379	.741	1.6	4.4	.9	.1	7.4
2020–21	Memphis	70	9	17.5	.431	.321	.911	2.0	3.7	.9	.1	6.3
2021–22	Memphis	73	23	21.2	.451	.390	.818	2.4	4.4	.9	.0	8.7
2022–23	Memphis	80	22	24.2	.438	.371	.800	2.5	5.2	1.0	.1	10.3
2023–24	Washington	66	66	29.3	.489	.414	.800	2.7	7.3	1.1	.3	12.0
2024–25	Phoenix	81	58	26.8	.448	.414	.895	2.4	5.3	.9	.1	10.2
Career		682	218	21.1	.445	.378	.822	2.0	4.4	1.0	.1	7.7

NBA Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2018	Minnesota	4	0	13.8	.286	.000	—	2.3	2.0	.3	.0	1.0
2021	Memphis	5	0	9.4	.353	.250	1.000	1.4	1.2	.2	.0	3.0
2022	Memphis	12	3	21.8	.394	.400	.933	3.3	4.5	1.2	.2	9.2
2023	Memphis	6	1	20.0	.306	.158	.667	3.0	3.7	1.3	.0	4.5
Career		27	4	17.9	.365	.314	.900	2.7	3.3	.9	.1	5.8

College Statistics

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2014–15	Duke	39	39	33.9	.417	.379	.889	3.5	5.6	1.5	.1	11.8

Playing for Team USA

Tyus Jones has proudly represented USA Basketball in international competitions. He helped Team USA win gold medals at the 2011 FIBA Americas Under-16 Championship and the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Championship.

In the U16 tournament, Tyus led his team with 28 assists over five games. The U17 team went undefeated in eight games, and Tyus again led the team with 43 assists. In 2014, Tyus was selected as a captain for the USA national team for the 2014 FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship, where they also won a gold medal.

Personal Life

Tyus Jones comes from a family of basketball players. His parents are Rob and Debbie Jones. He has three brothers: Tre Jones, who plays for the Chicago Bulls, and two half-brothers, Jadee Jones and Reggie Bunch, who also played college basketball.

His mother, Debbie, was a point guard who won a high school state championship. His father, Rob, played college basketball in the 1980s. His aunt, Darcy Cascaes, was also a talented basketball player. His cousin, Jared Nuness, was named Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year in 1997.

Tyus was named after another basketball player, Tyus Edney. Tyus has been friends with Jahlil Okafor since they were eight years old. Besides basketball, Tyus also played American football as a quarterback and was a good baseball pitcher and shortstop when he was younger.

Tyus and his longtime girlfriend, Carrie Yeakey, got engaged before the 2019–20 NBA season. They welcomed their son, Tyus Jr., on May 5, 2020.

Tyus Jones facts for kids

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