Warrior Insider

Rob Jones was announced as a new assistant coach for the University of Hawai’i basketball team on Thursday.

Jones was an assistant coach at UC Riverside last season. Before that, he was affiliated with Saint Mary’s as a player, graduate assistant and Director of Player Development.

Hawai’i head coach Eran Ganot was an assistant coach at Saint Mary’s when Jones was a player

Jones fills the coaching spot vacated when Mike Thomas resigned from the UH staff last month for personal reasons.

Here is the announcement from hawaiiathletics.com …

HONOLULU – University of Hawaii men’s basketball coach Eran Ganot announced that Rob Jones has joined the UH staff as an assistant coach. Jones, who Ganot coached as a player at Saint Mary’s College, comes to Manoa after stints with his alma mater and most recently at UC Riverside. 

Jones will assist with all aspects of the program including practice and game planning.  He’ll play a big role in recruiting, opponent scouting and will concentrate on the team phases of rebounding and defense.  Additionally, Jones will work on developing the Rainbow Warrior wing and post players.

Last season as an assistant coach with Big West rival UC Riverside, he helped lead the Highlanders to a 16-12 mark. Prior to UCR he was on the Saint Mary’s staff for three seasons, first as a graduate assistant and then as the Director of Player Development. 

“Rob is someone I’ve had the fortune of knowing for some time, having coached him for two seasons at Saint Mary’s,” Ganot said. “He’s an accomplished player who knows what it takes to succeed and has used those traits to become a terrific coach with a bright future. WIth his strong voice and presence, he’ll be a great mentor to our student-athletes. Rob’s a perfect fit for our program and our University and we’re thrilled to welcome him to the ‘ohana.”  

“I’m really excited to join this great program,” Jones said.  “After years of watching and a season of coaching against Hawaii, I’m glad to be on the sideline with the team this year. Coach Ganot was a great mentor to me in my time at Saint Mary’s and one of the reasons I chose this career path. I look forward to working with him and the staff.”

Jones was a two-time first-team all-West Coast Conference selection at Saint Mary’s College. As a senior, he led the WCC and ranked seventh nationally in rebounds per game with a 10.8 average and ranked fifth nationally in double-doubles with 20 on the season despite standing just 6-5. During that same season he helped lead SMC to an outright league title, an NCAA Tournament appearance and No. 12 national ranking. In his two seasons in Moraga, the Gaels went 53-16.

Prior to SMC, he played at the University of San Diego where he earned all-WCC freshman honors and was part of the 2008 Toreros team that upset fourth-seeded Connecticut in the NCAA Tournament. In all, Jones has been part of three NCAA Tournament squads, most recently as a member of the Saint Mary’s staff (2019).

Professionally, Jones played for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2012 NBA Summer League before playing overseas for four years in Greece, Poland, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Australia, winning the 2012-13 Polish TBL with Stelmet Zielona Gora.