The Miami HEAT announced today that they have signed free agent guard/forward James Jones. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Jones, 6’8”, 220 pounds, shot 44.4 percent from three-point range last season finishing with the third-best mark in the NBA. The five-year NBA veteran appeared in 58 games (three starts) for the Portland Trail Blazers last season and averaged 8.0 points and 2.8 rebounds in 22.0 minutes while shooting 43.7 percent from the field and 87.8 percent from the foul line. He shot at least 50 percent from beyond the arc 31 times with his best effort coming on April 15 as he tied his single-game career-high with six three-point field goals made.

Prior to his stint in Portland, Jones spent the previous two seasons with the Phoenix Suns appearing in 151 games (31 starts) and during the 2005-06 season, averaged a career-best 9.3 points per game while connecting on a career-best 110 three-point field goals made.

Jones, a local Miami product, was originally drafted in the second round of the 2003 NBA Draft with the 49th pick by the Indiana Pacers. He spent four years at the University of Miami, finishing his colligate career with the Hurricanes ranked third in blocked shots (192) and in games played (122) and 11th in scoring (1,356). Jones also attended American Senior High School in Miami and was named as the Class 6A Player of the Year in Florida in 1999.