Former Indiana guard Curtis Jones transferred to Penn State in early-September and is slowly emerging as a leader for his final year of eligibility. He's already made a good impression on his new teammates and is fighting to earn a starting job at point guard.

Upon sitting in front of the media live on Big Ten Network at Big Ten Basketball Media Day in Chicago on Wednesday, Penn State head coach Patrick Chambers made it clear what his message for the day was going to be – his team finally has experience.

Chambers listed the reasons why his Nittany Lions team is more experienced on all fronts, including calling star forward Lamar Stevens a “pioneer” for returning for his senior season, and detailed how the inexperience last season cost them in a lot of ways, particularly the fact that three of the four primary contributors in the backcourt were freshmen.

Then, he got to former Indiana guard and Penn State grad transfer Curtis Jones, who joined the team in early September.

“We have guards that are more experienced now,” Chambers said. “Curtis Jones, the fifth-year kid – that was a massive pickup for us. You need older guards to win in this league.”

Jones is re-entering the Big Ten after spending the first two seasons of his career in Bloomington, signing in with the 2016 class that also featured current Hoosiers De’Ron Davis and Devonte Green.

The combo guard catapulted his way into the hearts of Indiana fans during his first game against Kansas, when the Hoosiers beat the Jayhawks on the road in overtime thanks to 15 points and solid defense from Jones. He appeared to be a strong defensive presence on a team that needed defense in 2016-17 and a good addition to a backcourt that featured James Blackmon Jr., Robert Johnson and Josh Newkirk.

But the momentum slowed for Jones, and he finished the season averaging a little more than 11 minutes per game and only played seven games the next season before transferring to Oklahoma State. Through 23 games as a non-starter in his lone season for the Cowboys, Jones’ season was highlighted by another stellar performance – 19 points, five rebounds – against Kansas. But his team didn’t generate any postseason buzz.

Those experiences are what made him a prime candidate as a graduate transfer, and his eventual Penn State teammates recognized it immediately.

“He actually came up on a visit where I met him, and we got to go out to dinner with his family,” Penn State junior forward John Harrar said. “I’m pretty sure we told him, ‘Listen, man, we want you. We want you to be here. You could add a lot to our team.’”

Jones walks into a crowded backcourt in Happy Valley, where there is a lot of recent experience in the youngest of players. Chambers was adamant that he never guaranteed a starting position for Jones when he committed to transferring to Penn State, and there’s plenty that Chambers wants him to work on – primarily his shooting. During his career, Jones has shot just under 34 percent from the floor with some erratic patterns throughout the three seasons.

But Chambers said he’s rebounding better than he has in the past, and he’s adding weight after an ankle injury in the summer. Despite all of the improvements Jones needs to make, Chambers was clear that his previous Big Ten experience is invaluable, and Harrar said the newest point guard is “dominating” practice.

Perhaps the most telling of signs regarding the future of Jones at Penn State is that he is rooming with Stevens. In the one month that Jones has been in the program, the two are building a good relationship, which Chambers feels will strongly affect the dynamics of the team on the court.

“If they have that connection in their apartment, then that connection will domino down onto the court,” Chambers said. “That only brings the juniors and the sophomores and the freshmen. They have somebody to look up to when in years’ past, we didn’t really have any seniors, or they left early or they transferred, so our younger guys are looking up at no one. Who’s going to lead them? Who’s going to show them the way? I think Lamar and Curtis could do that.”

As Stevens says Jones is emerging as a leader already and Harrar notes Jones’ ability to be a locker room presence, Jones is searching for the opportunity he thought he’d take advantage of in Bloomington, when he entered the Big Ten as the No. 85 overall recruit in the 2016 class.

Now he’s back, playing opponents he’s already faced on multiple occasions and will likely see significant time against his former team during the conference schedule. It’s his last chance to take the reins, and Stevens said he can tell that has Jones motivated.

“He’s been working really hard, so I think he’s excited for this opportunity to really leave his mark.”

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