Marcel Jones has known for a long time he was going to sign up for this year's NBL but the American Kiwi held off his official registration until yesterday for an emotional reason.
Jones opted to register for New Zealand’s basketball competition on June 3 to mark the birthday of his late father.
“It's been about a year and a couple of months since he passed,” Jones told 1 NEWS.
“I guess if it was his birthday, he would have been 64.”
Jones’ father played a key role in his basketball career, which is why he wanted to honour him.
“My dad was there at the beginning, he was there in the middle. He won't be there at the end but, you know, I just try to keep him present in any way I can.”
This year will also mark Jones' 10th campaign in the New Zealand NBL and is just the latest chapter in a basketball odyssey which began in the US back in 2008.
Since then, he's played for 12 different clubs across nine countries in Europe and the UK as well as four clubs in the Middle East and he's played for most of the New Zealand franchises, including multiple stints with Canterbury and Manawatu.
This year's draft system could mean he lands at a new club again, potentially adding another jersey to a collection that already boasts over 20.
“Whoever takes me, I'll be grateful,” he said.
“I'm just ready to play.”
Clubs will be keen on his signature, too, with Jones the league's most valuable player back in 2016 and last year averaged more than twenty points and eleven rebounds a game.
And while Dad may sadly only be able to watch from above, Jones says his mum back in Los Angeles will definitely be tuned in on pay-per-view television.
Jones doesn’t have long to wait to find out who his mum will be watching either, with the NBL draft taking place next week.
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