Ever since NAU junior guard Cameron Jones declared for the NBA Draft last month, his teammates have been calling him by a different name than Cameron.

"(Freshman guard) Gabe (Rogers) has been calling me Pro the last couple weeks," Jones said laughing. "It hasn't been Cameron, it's been Pro."

Well, Rogers and the rest of the Lumberjacks can go back to calling him Cameron.

Jones officially withdrew from the 2010 NBA Draft on Wednesday and will return for his senior season in Flagstaff.

When Jones declared for the draft last month, he insisted he was just doing it to get some publicity and would return for his senior season.

That was his plan all along and now Jones will turn his focus back to NAU and leading a team next year that returns all but two players.

"There's no harm in doing what I did," Jones said Wednesday. "I feel like I'm an elite player in the country and if I come back and play hard this year, I'll have an opportunity to play professional basketball somewhere and I wanted to get my name out there."

Jones didn't go through any workouts with any NBA teams, but at least five teams contacted coach Mike Adras to inquire about Jones.

Jones, who averaged 19.3 points per game last season to lead NAU in scoring, is an intriguing prospect with his length as a guard (6-foot-4) and his ability to easily play both guard spots. However, Adras is obviously pleased to have his main scoring threat back for another season.

"I am very excited that Cam Jones is going to return for his senior season," Adras said in a statement. "I think the experience was a positive one for him and his family. I am pleased with their decision that he will come back to play his senior year and finish his education."

The guard's plan to get some national publicity by declaring did work. There were two several national websites and publications that picked up the story and espn.com even devoted a blog to Jones' decision.

"It was a cool process," Jones said. "It's neat that a little guy from NAU can get on ESPN."

Now that the NBA process is officially behind him, Jones is ready to focus on next year's Jacks squad, which should be picked somewhere in the Top 3 in the preseason Big Sky Conference poll.

"I'm real excited because it's probably going to the best team I've ever been a part of," said Jones, who celebrated his 21st birthday on Tuesday. "We'll all put the work in during the offseason and come back ready to go. I hope people weren't worried about me leaving, because I always knew I was coming back."

The Los Angeles native will head back to California this week for the summer where he'll work out with his cousin, Landry Fields, who just wrapped up his playing career at Stanford. Fields will be preparing for the draft and Jones will go through the workouts with Fields in preparation for his senior year.

Daniel Berk can be reached at dberk@azdailysun.com or 556-2251.