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Weber State men's basketball alum Dillon Jones, left, poses for a photo with Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti after an introductory press conference Saturday, June 29, 2024, in Oklahoma City. The Thunder selected Jones with the 26th overall pick in the NBA draft.

Photo supplied, Oklahoma City Thunder

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Weber State's Dillon Jones (3) poses with fellow Oklahoma City Thunder draft picks Nikola Topic (44) and Ajay Mitchell (25) on Saturday, June 29, 2024, in Oklahoma City.

Zach Beeker, Oklahoma City Thunder

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Weber State's Dillon Jones (3) poses for a photo with his family, from left, Eric Washington, Rozeita Jones and Courtney Jones after the player was introduced as a Thunder draft pick Saturday, June 29, 2024, in Oklahoma City.

Zach Beeker, Oklahoma City Thunder

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During his time at Weber State, Dillon Jones received wisdom from Damian Lillard, the All-NBA, All-Star alum who came before him at WSU.

Principles like “to be a great leader, you have to be a great servant” are a constant in Lillard’s approach to his career, principles he calls “the formula” that he’s absorbed from his mentors.

With a mentor who writes similar “bars” as a rap artist, it’s no surprise Jones had a terse verse of his own Saturday when he was introduced in Oklahoma City with the Thunder, the NBA team that drafted him No. 26 overall Wednesday.

“Being the guy helped me know what the guy will need from me,” Jones said about how he fits on a team that was the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference last season.

That certainly turned some heads for the Thunder media and fan contingent online, getting their first glimpses of what Jones and fellow draft picks Nikola Topic and Ajay Mitchell bring to Oklahoma City.

He’ll wear No. 3 for the Thunder — “the guy” in OKC is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who wears Jones’ No. 2 from Weber State. So Jones switched to a number he and his brother, Eric Washington, have used to honor Washington’s friend in Columbia, South Carolina, who died by gun violence in 2010.

Jones’ pro career went from zero to 100 in an instant when the Thunder, long interested in the Weber State star, traded five second-round picks to move into the 26th pick to get him to Oklahoma City.

He flew to Oklahoma the next day, has met with dozens of people, was introduced Saturday and, in one week’s time, he’ll put on his No. 3 jersey at the Salt Lake City Summer League (July 8-10).

“It still don’t really feel real, honestly,” Jones told a small Utah media contingent on a video call Saturday afternoon, wearing his blue Thunder jersey he’d held up for photos just an hour before. “Y’all are the first people I’ve seen since I got drafted that knew me before … and y’all now looking at me in a Thunder jersey. It feels weird talking to y’all from the other side.”

Jones was not at the Barclays Center where the draft took place, instead taking it in with a small group of family, friends and a few WSU coaches at his agency’s office, Roc Nation Sports, nearby in New York City.

He had stepped out of the room with his brother just before taking the call from the Thunder telling him the good news and, for the first time, the two were able to appreciate that it worked — Jones stayed at Weber State, withdrew from the draft last year, and reached the first round and all the perks that go with it.

Jones shared that he ultimately returned to WSU in 2023 on his brother’s perspective that he shouldn’t just aim to be in the NBA, he should want to stay in the NBA.

Washington “let the emotions go for everybody in the room,” Jones said. “That was the satisfaction for me. I’ve never seen tears of joy before. … It was all for these moments right here.”

Jones later learned that OKC general manager Sam Presti planned to take him last season with a late second-round pick, had he stayed in the draft. The Thunder were one of the teams who scouted him most consistently, including when Presti himself went to Oral Roberts (in Tulsa) and saw Jones total 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists on 10-of-13 shooting from two in a Weber State win.

This time around, Oklahoma City had a long gap between its No. 12 selection of Topic and its next pick in the second round, so Presti expended a chunk of his hard-earned draft capital to make sure Jones ended up in Boom Town.

“It meant a lot,” Jones said. “I was wanted at Weber from the jump, and to have that same level of things play out on such a way higher scale is kind of crazy to think about. What they did to get in position to take me … I’m forever grateful for that.”

He had to laugh about what became yearslong interest from Presti.

“He told me yesterday he was disappointed that I went back to school last year. I was like, ‘you didn’t tell me that, you didn’t tell me you were gonna take me.’ It was a funny little moment,” Jones said. “It’s just crazy to have that interest from a team … I think it speaks volumes and it’s a crazy experience.”

Between a formal press conference and some one-on-ones with media in Oklahoma City, Jones spent a couple hours answering questions Saturday.

Several questions revolved around his game being “unorthodox” — a primary ball-handler who was one of the country’s best defensive rebounders, who passes well and played defense one through five.

“I’m just doing whatever they need me to do,” Jones said about his NBA fit. “(The Thunder) play an unorthodox style in a lot of ways. For me as a player — an unorthodox player, I guess you can say — that fits like a hand in a glove. Whatever they need me to do, I’ll be ready.”

Presti said he drafted Jones for his anticipation skills as a player who can “process things quickly,” and for his do-it-all game, long wingspan, and his physicality.

Jones said he was “blessed” to have coaches at Weber State who saw his “unorthodox” game as a blessing and put him in positions to use his skill set.

“That’s what ultimately was able to catapult me being here,” he said.

This was the third time as a Weber State coach that Eric Duft has seen a player develop over four years to become an NBA draft pick.

“Ultimately, this is why you do this,” Duft said.

Duft credited Jones for his perseverance and willingness to see his own faults, seek feedback and work on himself.

“Truly a life-changing event for him and his family,” Duft said. “So we’re just extremely excited about him and his process and, knowing Dillon, he’s already started thinking about what he’s got to do to make this next chapter successful.”