Video: Roy Jones III basketball highlightsFlorida junior emerging from his famous father's shadow on the hardwood
Roy Jones Jr. is one of the greatest boxers of all-time, winning 49 of the first 50 fights of his career – the lone loss came on a controversial disqualification – and titles in four different weight classes.
Roy Jones III is a rising junior at
Pine Forest (Pensacola, Fla.) and taking a slightly different path than his famous father by pursuing basketball.
The 5-foot-8 point guard averaged 14.1 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.9 steals and 1.6 assists per game as a sophomore at Pine Forest, leading the Eagles to 20 wins and a playoff berth.
Roy Jones Jr. and Roy Jones III
Photo courtesy of Roy Jones Jr.
A crafty finisher and lockdown on-ball defender, Jones III possesses some of the same traits as his father, who owned arguably the fastest pair of hands in boxing history.
"I definitely feel that I inherited his speed," Jones III told MaxPreps.
He may have also inherited some of his talent on the court.
In 1996, Jones Jr. played for the Jacksonville Barracudas in a United States Basketball League game before defending his super middleweight belt later that night. He is believed to be the first athlete to participate in two professional sporting events on the same day.
Jones Jr. is deeply involved with the game of basketball, sponsoring his son's AAU team this summer.
"I love basketball," Jones Jr. told MaxPreps. "That's my team and I'm really into it. I enjoy watching my son perform and I want to give him the best opportunity to possibly play at the next level. I helped teach him the sport and it's been fun to watch him develop."
Jones III doesn't have any college offers at the moment but says he's generating some Division II interest.
Roy Jones Jr. with his son's club team this summer.
Photo courtesy of Roy Jones Jr.
