Pirate Preview: Del Jones

Published: Saturday, October 3, 2026

by Ross Vocaturo

In the midst of a busy offseason in South Orange, one of the earliest additions to the 2026-27 Seton Hall Pirates was 6’3” guard Del Jones. Jones, who spent last season with the Radford Highlanders, started in all 32 of the program’s games. 

 

Hailing from Landover, Maryland, Jones’ basketball prowess began early on, as ESPN listed him as a four star recruit, and the 66th best high school prospect in the nation (14th among point guards). His Pirate pipeline also predates his collegiate career, as Jones and the returning Trey Parker played together in Overtime Elite.

 

Prior to starting with the Highlanders last season, Jones started his collegiate journey with the Clemson Tigers. While coming off the bench, he averaged 3.8 points, 1.5 rebounds, and one assist per game. His season-high came in a 13 point performance at Virginia Tech while tallying two points, two assists and a rebound in Clemson’s Round of 64 loss to McNeese later in the year.

 

Jones really hit the scene in his sophomore season as a Radford Highlander. His aforementioned permanent presence in the starting rotation rolled out the carpet for Jones to elevate all facets of his game; and he did just that. 

 

His end-of-season statistics were a mainstay atop the Big South Conference rankings. He averaged 17.2 points per game, good for fifth best in the Big South; 3.5 assists per game (fourth in the Big South), 0.9 steals per game (28th) and an 80.9% free throw percentage (fifth). 

 

Jones not only broke out from a statistical standpoint, but he also maintained consistency in his production. He reached double figures in 26 of his 32 games on the season, including a stretch of at least 21 points in seven straight games. 

 

Jones matched his season high total of 27 in four separate games, and his breakout campaign earned him Second-Team All-Conference recognition in the Big South.

 

While Jones makes the transition from the south to the east, his expectations will undoubtedly remain big. In an offseason that saw all but two Pirates from last season exit the program (Trey Parker and Elijah Fisher being the returnees), Jones arrives in South Orange with the potential to command the new-look backcourt alongside incoming Texas transfer Simeon Wilcher. 

 

His mix of offensive explosiveness tied with defensive prowess lands him the potential to be one of the most impactful players on the 2026-27 Seton Hall Pirates roster. 

 

Ross Vocaturo can be reached at ross.vocaturo@student.shu.edu 

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