HAINES CITY, Fla — Dazeran Jones’ pro-ball career was cut short after a foot injury, but he didn’t let that take him out of the game. 

“We had just won a championship,” said Jones. 

​Jones told me that his basketball career didn’t start until his junior year at Ridge Community High in Haines City, shortly after he started receiving offers. 

“I had to learn what you need to get into a D1 school. What kind of grades I had to have - all of that I had to learn,” said Jones. “Once I got recruited I got a full ride scholarship.”  

He played collegiately at Warner University, then signed with the Jacksonville Giants, a professional minor league basketball team - they won an American Basketball Association Championship. 

Shortly after their title run, a foot injury took Jones off the court, but he found a unique way to stay in the game - this time virtually.  

“I didn’t really care about social media before, but then it started paying the bills,” said Jones. “It wasn’t even really a team yet - just like content creators that were youtubers. We were very successful. We got millions of views.” 

After being asked to play a role in the reboot movie to White Men can’t Jump, Jones was contacted by NBA 2K to be a motion capture actor. 

“I think I was more mind blown than the movie,” said Jones. “I played video games growing up and now at the end of this video game, I’m going to be in the credits because I did movements.” 

NBA 2K pays actors like Jones to help create more realistic movements for their latest video games. 

“It’s stuff like this,” said Jones, pointing to the NBA 2K on his screen. “You see the people clapping and talking - dribbling, jumping - those are all motions done by actors.” 

Jones now has a long line of exciting opportunities lined up - something he credits to never giving up. 

“It was tough after my injury but I kept going,” said Jones. “Just paving the way and showing all the kids and people that look up to me — it is possible; it’s very possible.”