With the commitment of New York point guard Jose Alvarado, Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner will have more to his sales pitch when he receives an official visit this weekend from Alabama shooting guard Herb Jones.
A three-star prospect (ESPN) from Newbern, Ala., Jones picked up attention over the summer with the Alabama Challenge, his AAU team. Alvarado has taken visits already to Auburn and Florida. After his weekend trip to Tech, his final two official visits of his permitted five will be to Georgia and Alabama.
Walter Jones, Herb’s father, said that the family was impressed with Pastner and the school. Herb Jones is the son of educators – his father is a middle-school history teacher and his mother is an administrator – and carries a 4.0 GPA, Walter Jones said.
“A degree from Georgia Tech – man, that carries a lot,” he said. “It’s not just about basketball from my perspective.”
Jones and his parents made an unofficial visit to Tech a few weeks ago after receiving a scholarship offer in the early summer. Jones said that Pastner was to also make a school visit Thursday.
“The thing is, you have to kind of get a feel for (Pastner),” said Jones, who is also the assistant coach of his son’s team at Hale County High. “He had an honest conversation with Herb, and then he was explaining what his role would be, and that he would have to earn his minutes, and I liked to hear that.”
Jones is listed at 6-foot-5 and 180 pounds. ESPN rates him as the No. 6 player in the state of Alabama and the No. 38 player at his position (ESPN catalogs him as a small forward).
Jones will be the third senior prospect to take an official visit to Tech, following Alvarado and Greenforest-McCalep Christian Academy center Ikechukwu Obiagu, an indication of sincere interest as prospects are allowed only five.
Jones said that the plan is for his son to make a decision before the start of basketball practice in mid-October.
