How a whirlwind JUCO recruitment helped Wichita State find its final roster spot
Less than a week before he committed to Wichita State, Desmeon “NuNu” Jones was still trying to turn the right heads at a junior college showcase event in Texas.
One of those heads belonged to WSU assistant coach Kenton Paulino.
In the span of less than a week, Jones had gone from impressive showcase find to official visitor to the final piece of Paul Mills’ 2026 recruiting class — a whirlwind rise for a 5-foot-11 point guard who announced his commitment to Wichita State on Thursday evening.
Jones, who spent his freshman season at Blinn College, averaged 12.4 points, 4.8 assists and 2.1 steals while leading Region 14 in assists and finishing second in steals. He is expected to be a developmental addition for the Shockers, someone who can learn behind veteran guards Jordan Frison, Jahari Long and Mike Gray Jr. while bringing a scrappy edge to practice every day.
The move also reunites Jones with WSU forward Dillon Battie, his former teammate at Lancaster High School in Texas, where the two helped the team win a Class 5A state championship.
After starting his college career at the junior-college level, Jones spoke to The Eagle on Thursday with the unmistakable gratitude of a player eager to prove he belongs on a competitive Division I roster.
“It’s an opportunity that a lot of people in my position wish they could get,” Jones said. “I’m just blessed to be able to get that last spot on the roster. This is a great opportunity for me and my family to come in and get this D1 experience. I’m ready to take advantage of it.”
Jones’ path to WSU moved fast enough that even he was still processing it.
He played well last weekend at the P32 JUCO Showcase near Dallas, where Paulino was in attendance. Jones’ performance caught his attention and WSU quickly moved from evaluation to pursuit. The Shockers invited Jones to Wichita for an official visit that began Monday and wrapped up Tuesday.
By the end of the visit, Jones said he and his father were convinced WSU was the right next step.
“They treated me like I was already one of their own,” Jones said. “I really liked how they treated me. I feel like I could spend the next three or four years here.”
That mattered to Jones, who was curious entering the visit how WSU would handle a late-spring recruitment for the final scholarship spot on the roster. He said he was looking to move on to the Division I level, but the Shockers were the program that made it clear they wanted him immediately rather than waiting for him to spend another year in junior college.
For WSU, the appeal is clear: Jones is a promising long-term bet with multiple years of eligibility, giving the Shockers a chance to develop him inside their program rather than rushing him into an immediate role.
Jones was named honorable mention all-conference and all-region after his lone season at Blinn. His numbers of 12.4 points, 4.8 assists and 2.1 steals point to a point guard who can create offense, pressure the ball and impact the game with pace. He shot 43% from the field, 33% on 3s and 70% at the free-throw line.
But his role with the Shockers will likely require patience.
WSU already has a crowded veteran backcourt. Frison, a senior point guard transfer from Chattanooga, was brought in to help run the offense. Long, a senior guard from George Mason, adds another experienced option. Gray returns as a senior after being part of WSU’s core last season.
The Shockers view Jones as a player who can spend his first season developing behind older guards, learning the demands of Mills’ system and pushing the veterans in practice.
Jones said he welcomes that setup.
“I’m very excited to learn from those veterans,” Jones said. “It gives me a chance to develop every day in practice. I’m always willing to learn. You can never know too much, especially as a point guard. So learning every day and having a chance to compete, it’s just a good situation for me. The more I compete, the better I’ll get. Iron sharpens iron, so they can make me better and I can make them better too.”
That mindset is part of what WSU is betting on.
Jones will not arrive in Wichita as the biggest guard on the roster. He will not arrive with the same Division I resume as some of the transfers Mills added this offseason. But he believes his edge, competitiveness and willingness to embrace a developmental path can help him carve out a place in the program.
“I’m just a dog,” Jones said. “I’m very aggressive and very tough on both ends of the floor. I make sure everybody having fun on the court as a point guard. I’m a winner. I take winning very seriously. I’m a competitor and I’m going to give you my 100% effort every time I’m out on the court.”
Jones’ commitment also completes what has been a productive offseason for Mills, who has positioned WSU to build on last season’s 24-win breakthrough.
The Shockers will return 10 players from a team that reached the American Conference tournament championship game and advanced to the third round of the NIT. That group includes center Will Berg, Battie, wing T.J. Williams, Gray, forward Jaret Valencia and center Noah Hill .Mills supplemented that returning core with four Division I transfers: Frison, Long, Dayton wing Bryce Heard and New Mexico State center Cyr Malonga.
Jones became the final addition and the lone junior-college transfer in the class.
That roster construction says plenty about how WSU views the upcoming season. The Shockers kept the bulk of a winning team intact, added veteran help in the transfer portal and used their final spot on a younger point guard who does not need to be rushed.
For Jones, that final part might be the best part.
He can enter the program without needing to carry the offense right away. He can learn from veteran guards. He can compete every day. He can lean on a former high school teammate in Battie, who has already gone through his own growth process at WSU.
And after one showcase weekend changed the direction of his basketball future, Jones sounds eager to prove the Shockers were right to move quickly.
“I’m ready to take advantage of it,” Jones said.
.jpg)