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The collective bargaining agreement expires June 30, and while the league and players are trying to reach a new deal, they remain far apart on major financial issues, raising the possibility of a work stoppage. "Until something is done, nothing is done," Heat player representative James Jones said Monday on the eve of the Finals. "We're looking at a scenario where we're riding a high of excitement and the game is thriving, to coming back to reality and understanding we're in a labor battle where there may not be games and players may be locked out." CBSSports.com

Miami Heat, James Jones, Lockout 

Chris Perkins: James Jones' left foot in walking boot. Torn tendon 2nd toe. Did it Game 1 of this series. Said can play if needed. Twitter

Miami Heat, James Jones, Injuries 

Jermaine O’Neal’s Flagrant 1 foul on James Jones in the third quarter was downgraded to a personal foul. Jones was in turn assessed for a Flagrant 1 foul for his foul of Paul Pierce in the fourth quarter. Boston Herald

Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, Paul Pierce, James Jones, Jermaine O'Neal 

Ken Berger: #NBA rescinds James Jones' tech from Pierce incident, but Jones' foul upgraded to flagrant-one, league source says. Twitter

Miami Heat, James Jones 

“I didn’t see us start anything,” LeBron James said. “I don’t understand what all the other conversation is about. We just want to play basketball. Go out there we’re going to be physical, the best team will win the game that night. That’s all it’s about.” Added Dwyane Wade, “At the end of the day it’s basketball. No one’s going to be out there doing anything crazy. Ain’t no fighting going on. It’s basketball and the guys are going to be physical and they’re going to take hard fouls. You just got to move on from it.” James Jones: “It’s all in the game. We’re trying to keep it strictly about basketball. Whenever you have emotionally charged guys on the floor, two very high caliber teams battling and competing, you always have something. No one wants to give an inch.” WEEI.com

Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, James Jones 

Observations from Sunday’s 99-90 victory over the Celtics at AmericanAirlines Arena: The Celtics have Dwyane Wade’s number? Uh, don’t think so. LeBron James has been better and will need to be better in this series. At times, he was the only Heat player not playing team ball. His moments of selfishness were glaring. More also will be needed from Chris Bosh. Can we stop kidding ourselves, the Heat are better with ANY combination that is not the starting lineup, right? James Jones’ four second-quarter 3-pointers tied the Heat single-period playoff record previously also shared by Wade, Damon Jones, Tim Hardaway. Jones was huge. And needed. South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, LeBron James, Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, James Jones 

Q: Could the Miami Heat re-sign Mike Bibby and James Jones while also retaining the mid-level exception to sign a center? — Diego. A: They could, but that comes down to Bibby accepting a minimum-salary reality, which essentially is where his game stands these days. South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Miami Heat, James Jones, Mike Bibby 

NDP: Being on teams that have needed time to adjust and get to know eachother, did you expect them to have some struggles out of the gate? Penny: Oh yeah. It’s not going to just happen like that, because it’s not 3 on 5. It’s 5 on 5. The other guys will have to step up as well, and I just knew that DWade and LeBron weren’t jump shooters. They were going to be attacking and attacking, and teams were just going to pack the paint and make them make jumpers and force them into tough shots, versus just getting into the paint. That’s why they needed another facilitator, because if that guy can break the defense down and give it to them, now they’re 1 on 1 and doing whatever they want to do. When they start with the ball, everyone loads to help their side, and even though they have shooters to surround them, their shooters aren’t knocking down shots, so that’s making it all difficult for them. They might make shots once the playoffs come around, but if Mike Miller, Mike Bibby or James Jones got hot, it would make things a lot easier for LeBron and DWade to do what they need to do. If you help, they can kick it to somebody that they know is not going to miss, but they haven’t had that and those guys are missing a lot of those shots. Sole Collector

Miami Heat, LeBron James, James Jones, Mike Miller, Mike Bibby 

Kevin Arnovitz: Just asked James Jones about whether a player could come out. He's far more optimistic than other players, execs & coaches I've spoken to Twitter

James Jones 

Miami has had 920 unguarded catch-and-shoot field-goal attempts, according to synergysportstech.com. By comparison, the Lakers have had 712. “I’ve always attracted so much attention that guys get open looks,” James said Wednesday. “When I have new teammates, it’s a harder adjustment at the beginning because they’re not used to getting so many open looks. Mike Bibby, Mike Miller, [ James Jones] — these guys are getting so many open looks because me and D-Wade attract so many eyes.” Miami Herald

Miami Heat, LeBron James, James Jones, Mike Miller, Mike Bibby 

When James Jones goes on the road, he racks up a huge food bill. But not for the reasons you're thinking. "Room service is tough. The side dishes are the most overpriced thing on the menu," said Jones. "I'm ordering five side dishes of steamed broccoli, five dishes of steamed asparagus, and a bowl of brown rice. My bill for that right there might be $70, but that's the trade-off it you want to eat right on the road." ESPN.com

Miami Heat, James Jones 

That is, if you're a vegetarian. Jones, a reserve small forward with the Miami Heat who won the three-point competition during this year's NBA All-Star weekend, described himself as a "very heavy meat-eater" before becoming a vegetarian in 2007. His go-to meal in the old days? Macaroni and cheese with barbequed chicken. James said that becoming a vegetarian opened him up to lots of new grains, rices and oatmeal. And though it has closed him off to meat, he's not beyond knowing that everyone else loves a good meal piled high with animal protein. ESPN.com

Miami Heat, James Jones 

Making the change was as tough as getting a few minutes on the floor behind the Big Three. What with fast food, arena food and room service making up three of an NBA player's food groups, what's a vegetarian to do? Ask John Salley. Now a vegan, Salley was 27 when he signed with the Heat (1992-95) and decided to become a vegetarian. "For me, I was gaining weight and I was depressed. Everyone thinks that life in the NBA is the best life you can have, but then it's like baseball and you run into a slump," said Salley, who has since become a vegan and also launched John Salley Foods, an organic and vegan food company. "That's the way it goes when everyone treats you well and you are having steak dinners at restaurants, and it's 'surf and turf', and the manly thing is not to order a salad. I had to get out of that." ESPN.com

Miami Heat, James Jones 

James Jones may be a role player in the regular season, but on Saturday he was the crowd favorite shining on center stage, winning the 2011 Foot Locker 3-Point Contest. Jones topped Celtics teammates Ray Allen and Paul Pierce -- each greeted with a resounding chorus of boos by the Staples Center crowd -- in the final round, draining four balls at each of the five stations to finish with 20 points. Pierce, the reigning champion at this event, finished second with 18, while Allen came in third with 15. "Those shots that I was taking out there, they're reflective of how I play the game during the season, so it was an easy transition for me," said Jones. "And I think playing and shooting against some of the best competition in the league kind of brought the best out of me." FanHouse.com

Boston Celtics, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, James Jones, All-Star 

But this offseason - if and when an NBA lockout occurrs - well, you can find (James) Jones in the financial district in Miami where he hopes to dabble in some investment banking to pass the time. Because unlike some players in the league, Jones is already making plans for a lengthy work stoppage. "This is my livelyhood and the owners want to lock us out. And we have no choice if we are locked out, so we try to control what we can control and negotiate and bargain," Jones told Beyond the Beat. Beyond The Beat

Miami Heat, James Jones, Lockout 

"But at the end of the day, we know it's up to them if they choose to lock us out. I'll be fine. I'm a finance guy, so I'd probably end up interning somewhere and keep up on my workouts and try to stay healthy. I'll probably go and work with some of my buddies in the financial sector, or maybe do some banking or financial advising." Beyond The Beat

Miami Heat, James Jones, Lockout 

And while the team is catching flak from all sides over their slow start, he's not surprised at all. "No, it's something we signed up for," said Jones on all the hoopla that surrounds the HEAT. "I knew coming into the season there would be a lot of media, a lot of scrutiny, a lot of attention, and that it would be a grand stage every time we played. And so whether things go our way or don't go our way we understand we have to take the good with the bad – and right now it's been more bad than good." After the hype built over the summer following the signings of the big three, Jones also isn't surprised how quickly that has been flipped around with the slow start. "No. But you know, that's sports. Someone always has to be the bad guy, and we can easily be the bad guy. A lot of people are taking that stance. For us, some guys say it's not motivation, but we've got guys who really love this game, so we pay attention to the vibe and the feel of the fans and the media. Not that it drives us, but because we're conscious of the game. HoopsWorld

Miami Heat, James Jones 

Minutes after Tuesday's game ended, James Jones hobbled into the Heat locker room after sustaining a hip injury during a hard foul. The pain was so aggravating for the Heat forward that he needed to hold onto the wall in order to put his jeans on. Despite the initial, discouraging outlook, Jones surprised many by recovering from the injury in time to play against the Celtics. ``I looked at [the foul] on film several times. I thought he'd be out of the game,'' Spoelstra said. ``He's fine and moving around at shootaround like nothing happened.'' Miami Herald

Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, James Jones 

Joseph Goodman: #Hornets coach Monty Williams also said Udonis Haslem and James Jones were the #Heat players who "keep me awake at night." Twitter

Miami Heat, New Orleans Hornets, Monty Williams, James Jones, Udonis Haslem 

Jones and Haslem have known each other since junior high school. They are both Miami products. That phone call from Haslem is why Jones, who was 5-for-11 on three- pointers in Wednesday’s 90-76 loss at New Orleans, is with the Heat today. “I had a talk with Udonis after I had pretty much committed to move forward, and that conversation centered around us both being guys that are from here, those dreams we had as kids to play here and be champions here,” Jones said. “Well, he’s already done it and we have an opportunity to do it again. And if I had an opportunity to take that step I would love to do it with guys that I love and respect.” FOXSports Florida

Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, James Jones, Udonis Haslem