'He knows everything we do'

CHAMPAIGN Brad Underwood could have made any number of moves to round out his coaching staff when Tim Anderson opted, in late September, to take a leave of absence from the program in the final year of his contract.

Big Ten assistant jobs dont exactly grow on trees.

Even if there are now 20 more of them following the conferences westward expansion.

Theres still value coaching in one of the top leagues in the country.

Underwood would have had more than a few bites had he gone fishing for a replacement.

Even at that point just 46 days before the start of the 2024-25 college basketball season.

But the Illinois coach didnt even cast a line.

The move Underwood wanted to make even if winds up being on a temporary basis for this season alone was a simple one.

An easy decision given the level of confidence and trust he had in Kwa Jones borne out of a relationship that dates back a decade.

Underwood first met Jones in Nacogdoches, Texas, as one of his sons friends and high school teammates.

That led to bringing him on board at Illinois in 2019 as a graduate assistant and then again in 2023 as director of scouting and recruiting.

Then promoting him last month.

Hes the guy, Underwood said.

I know how instrumental he was in relationships with Ayo (Dosunmu) and Trent (Frazier).

I know what he did on the court.

His ability to communicate.

Hes got just a very, very patient personality about him that fits.

These kids believe in that.

They believe in him.

Hes honest, he can be really tough when he needs to be and he knows the game.

Having Dosunmus endorsement doesnt hurt.

The former Illinois All-American, now in his fourth season with the Chicago Bulls, spent a lot of time on the practice court in 2019-20 and 2020-21 with Jones.

Through the ups and the downs, he was always there with me, Dosunmu said in the second episode of Illinois video series, Every Day Starts Here, that focused on Jones and assistant coaches Geoff Alexander and Orlando Antigua.

He always sacrificed his time, whether it was coming in working out with me at 5 a.m.

or staying at night until 9 p.m., Dosunmu continued.

He was an every day guy.

Kwa put the work in.

He worked so hard.

He sacrificed so much for him and his family.

I saw Kwa grind his butt off each and every day.

He always came to work with his hard hat on.

I was blessed to have a friend like that in my life.

Jones familiarity with Illinois made moving from his staff role to assistant coach a comfortable one.

He knows the system and what Underwood expects.

Now, its about finding his voice as an assistant and continuing to gain comfort in his new role.

Thats just a part of growth in coaching, Jones said.

Its a challenge for me taking a step up, but its being comfortable and loosening myself up.

I know Brad very well and I know what we want and know what success looks like.

Its challenging myself to loosen up and being more demanding.

My role last year I had a few rules and restrictions.

Couldnt really say much.

Had to be behind the scenes.

The idea of finding his voice as a coach isnt unique to Jones.

Its something all young coaches go through when they get their first assistant job.

Tyler Underwood went through the same experience last season after making the same move Jones did in September.

I joke with him: You never really feel like you have the answers or youve got it figured out, Tyler Underwood said.

Its about pouring into the guys and trying to help them find solutions.

His voice is continuing to grow.

We have a staff that specializes in roles.

Kwas finding his.

Player development will be a piece of Jones role.

That part of the job getting back on the court puts him back in his comfort zone after spending last season in an off-court role at Illinois and the season prior as director of operations at Stephen F.

Austin.

Brad Underwood trusted Jones with player development when he was a graduate assistant for the Illini.

So did the Sacramento Kings two years ago when Jones had some of those duties working with noted player development coach Rico Hines while also serving as a video coordinator.

When he was here as a GA he was very close with Ayo and Trent, Tyler Underwood said.

Someone my dad really trusted with player development.

I think he has a really good basketball mind, but as well as a guy these guys look to as a mentor.

Thats where I feel most comfortable, Jones added.

Thats where I started.

Thats natural for me.

It felt like the shackles were released off of me.

Still, getting experience as director of operations at SFA the Lumberjacks Joey Biggs, as Brad Underwood called it was still valuable even if it wasnt necessarily his strength.

So was moving cross country to Sacramento to work for the Kings.

It gave him insight into other aspects of how a team operates beyond the basketball court.

He jumps both feet in, Brad Underwood said.

Its a great fit for us, and I couldnt be more pleased with the job hes doing.

Jones, who played one season of junior college basketball before transferring to Houston to work as a manager for Kelvin Sampson, has seen the inner workings of successful programs.

He saw Sampson build the Cougars into a program that won 33 games and reached the Sweet 16 in 2018-19 and has added two more Sweet 16s, an Elite Eight and Final Four since.

Jones saw a similar rise at Illinois.

His second season as a graduate assistant saw the Illini win 24 games, take home a Big Ten tournament title and earn a No.

1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

His return last season lined up with Illinois going 29-9, winning another Big Ten tournament title and reaching the Elite Eight.

He knows everything we do, Tyler Underwood said.

He knows the culture.

He knows what it took to build it.

What hasnt been accomplished yet is why Jones opted to come back to Illinois when the opportunity was presented last year.

He considered business unfinished from his first stint in Champaign.

I just want to do anything to change that right banner over there that 1915 to 2025, Jones said while pointing to the banner hung at Ubben Basketball Complex signifying Illinois claimed national title more than a century ago.

Anything short of a national championship isnt good enough.

Thats my goal, and thats what were striving to do here..

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