After 14 NBA seasons and three championship rings, James Jones has decided to hang up his sneakers and retire.However, he won't be leaving the basketball world, as he agreed to become the Phoenix Suns' vice president of basketball operations on Wednesday and will start his new role right away.Jones, a longtime teammate of LeBron James as a member of both the Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers, will work alongside Suns general manager Ryan McDonough, who just received an extension.In a release from the Suns organization, McDonough said he's excited to have Jones in Phoenix after all the hard work he's done with the NBA Players Association in recent years:“James has a wealth of experiences that will greatly benefit our organization," McDonough said. "He is a three-time NBA Champion and has been one of the top executives with the National Basketball Players Association over the past few years. We welcome ‘Champ’ and his family to our Phoenix Suns family.”Jones played for the Suns for two seasons, 2005-06 and 2006-07, putting up some of his best numbers during the 05-06 campaign, when he averaged a career-high 9.3 points and 3.4 rebounds a night while appearing in 74 games.However, he'll be best remembered as a key piece of the Miami bench during the team's 2012 and 2013 title runs, and as a backup for the Cavs during their 2016 championship season.As a big presence in LeBron's career, King James will be sad to see Jones go, but offered a classy tweet of congratulations to his former teammate:

It'll be strange for James to not have Jones around next season, as the two players have spent the last seven seasons together, but it's safe to say when the Cavs are in Phoenix next year and when the Suns travel to Cleveland, the old friends will get together for dinner if they can.

For his career, Jones was a deadly three-point shooter, knocking down an impressive 40.1 percent of his shots from long range. According to the release, Jones never played for a team that finished with a losing record and only missed the postseason once in his 14-year career.

He also made an impact off the court, serving as the secretary-treasurer of the NBPA for several years. That experience will certainly be helpful as he prepares for his new front-office role in Phoenix.

With an opportunity to learn from one of the NBA's best GMs, it wouldn't be surprising to see Jones quickly rise through the ranks and earn a bigger role in Phoenix or elsewhere in the NBA in a couple of years.