 Jones was born in Ronkonkoma, New York in 1965 and graduated from Half Hollow Hills West High School in Dix Hills, New York in 1983.He was a four-year letter-winner at SUNY Oswego, where he earned a bachelor's degree in communications in 1987 and a master's degree in counseling in 1989.He played point guard for the Lakers and currently ranks 4th in assists and 5th in steals in the school's history.