10 most painful early departures in the Musselman Era

5. Mason Jones

Jones wasn't recruited out of high school like most players on this list. 247 Sports doesn't even have a high school profile for him. He took the junior college route, and, thankfully, Mike Anderson saw something in the young man.

In two years at Arkansas, he went from being a relatively unknown player to one of the best guards in the SEC, if not the country. He knocked down 45.3 percent of his shots last year in Fayetteville, averaging 22 points a game. As a guard, he was a menace on the glass with 5.5 boards a game and unselfish with 3.4 assists.

Here's how opposing coaches characterized his game.

By all available metrics, Jones was ready to take the next step in his career to play professionally. But the circumstances surrounding COVID-19 and the cancelation of the postseason, Arkansas fans never got to see him in a tournament setting that mattered. Imagine Jones on the following season's team. Maybe the Hogs make it past Baylor to a final four. Maybe they win a national championship.

It makes matters worse watching how his professional career has gone. Jones jumped around from franchise to franchise, mainly playing in the NBA G League or leaving the country to play. Currently, Jones has a two-way contract with Sacramento.