Los Angeles Lakers (1994–1999)[edit] The Los Angeles Lakers selected Jones with the 10th overall selection in the 1994 NBA draft. Lakers general manager Jerry West stated, "We wanted the best pure athlete available, and Eddie was too good to pass up".[1][2] In his rookie season Jones averaged 14.0 points per game and 2.05 steals per game as he played in 64 games, 58 of which he started. He also led the NBA in steal/turnover ratio (1.75), placed 4th in the NBA Rookie of the Year ballot, and was on the 1994–95 NBA All-Rookie First Team. In the 94–95 All-Star weekend Rookie Challenge he won the MVP, posting a game-high 25 points, 6 steals, and 4 rebounds. With his combination of size, athleticism, and defense, Jones began to draw favorable comparisons to another former Lakers great, Michael Cooper. (Cooper himself said that looking at Jones on the court was like "looking in a mirror."[3]) Jones would become an integral part of the Lakers squad, along with Nick Van Exel and Cedric Ceballos as the Lakers made the playoffs and upset the Seattle SuperSonics in the first round 3–1 before facing the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs led by league MVP David Robinson. The younger Lakers managed to push the Spurs to six games before losing the series, with Jones averaging 8.7 points off the bench in his first playoff run. The following year featured Jones solidifying his position as the team's starting shooting guard, as Jones started 66 of 70 games and averaged 12.8 points a game for the season. The Lakers improved their total record to 53 wins, bolstered by the midseason return of franchise legend Magic Johnson out of retirement. The Lakers made the playoffs again, but could not defeat the defending NBA champion Houston Rockets, who defeated the Lakers 3–1 in the first round. Jones averaged 17.3 points in the series. After his second season, Jones switched from number 25 to 6, as the Lakers had retired 25 for Gail Goodrich. He selected 6 as growing up he was a fan of Julius Erving. In the off-season, the team acquired superstar center Shaquille O'Neal, and traded Vlade Divac to the Hornets for rookie guard Kobe Bryant. Jones played and started in 80 games, placing second in the team in scoring with 17.2 points and fourth in the league in steals with 2.4 a game. He also played in his first NBA All-Star Game, scoring 10 points in 17 minutes in the 1997 NBA All-Star Game. Led by O'Neal, the Lakers won 56 games before defeating the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs, but fell to the top-seeded Utah Jazz in five games in the conference semifinals. Jones struggled in the playoffs, as his scoring average fell to 11.2 in the postseason. In the 1997–98 season, Jones averaged 16.9 points with 2 steals a game, and scored 15 points with 11 rebounds in the 1998 NBA All-Star Game. His pesky defense also earned him a selection to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.[4] The Lakers won 61 games and defeated Portland and Seattle in the first and second round of the playoffs. The team failed to win a game in the conference finals against the Jazz, however, as the veteran team swept the Lakers. Jones averaged 17 points with 2 steals in 13 playoff games.