As we round out the top ten draft prospects on most big boards for the 2015 NBA Draft, we take a look at another small forward after profiling Justise Winslow yesterday. This time, we look at a physical presence in Stanley Johnson, who could play linebacker for most college teams, but instead is a diaper dandy forward.
Name – Stanley Johnson
School – Arizona
Position – Small Forward
Height – 6’8″
Weight – 243 pounds
Draft Position – Top 10 Pick
Overview: Calling Johnson a physical beast would be like calling Ron Artest a little crazy. Johnson’s massive physique puts him at 6’8″ and 240+ pounds, but he also has nearly a 7′ wingspan and a standing reach of over eight-and-a-half feet. However, he does still have good quickness and is explosive, especially when he gets near the rim. Overall, he’s a physical specimen to behold.
He knows how to use his size and has decent post game. More importantly, he addressed concerns of his three-point stroke this year by knocking down 37.3% of his threes this year. His shot still could use some work as it’s a bit flat and starts too low, but he’s making it consistently right now, which is a positive.
There are still question marks like his driving ability, especially on his left-hand. And while he has surprising quickness for his size, it isn’t necessary elite level quickness. And like Winslow, it’s hard to envision Johnson as the best player on a title-winning team, which again comes down to what the Lakers are looking for.
Why The Lakers Should Be Excited: Are you tired of the Lakers being bad defensively and a weak team? Let me introduce Johnson to you. While teammate Rondae Hollis-Jefferson gets much of the praise for his work on the defensive end, Johnson is no slouch. He’s quick enough to stay with small guards and strong enough that few people are going to out-muscle him.
But he isn’t just physically gifted, but mentally as well. He has a good basketball IQ, good court vision, and a winners mentality. He’s not the type of defender to do it all on his own, but knows when to lead opponents into help/double teams. He is smart enough when to know he is physically too much for a player and will post them up at times. In reality, a good comparison would be Ron Artest (but much, much less crazy). Artest had a good basketball IQ, made the right plays, and knew where to be on the court. That describes Johnson perfectly.
Aside from his great defensive skills, he’s a good spot-up shooter as well. 80.5% of his three-pointers this year have been assisted, meaning he’s finding open spots on the floor to spot up. However, he has a very solid mid-range game as well, where he shoots 44.2% and 41% of his shots come from there. Compare that to someone like Winslow, who shoots just 19.2% of his shots from mid-range and shoots 40% on them. That’s a lesson that Kobe Bryant would be able to skip when tutoring him.
And, while it means nothing to his on-court performance, he did reveal this past weekend that he grew up a Lakers fan and a Kobe Bryant fan. Take that as you wish, but Julius Randle had the same circumstances. Maybe Johnson will know what it means to be a Laker.
Why The Lakers Should Be Wary: Well, much like Winslow, Johnson is not going to be a star player. Going back to a previous comparison, his ceiling is probably something like Metta World Peace in his prime with better offense. We saw that you need an MWP-type player to win a title, but do you need him so badly that you’d use a top-five pick on him?
His shot, while consistent over the long haul, has poor form and leads to off-shooting nights. It’s flat, line-drive shot with not enough arc that starts in front of his face, almost reminiscent of a Shawn Marion jumper (but not nearly as exaggerated). He would need to work on his jumper, which means there could be many bad shooting nights in his early year.s
That being said, the flaws he has are fixable. The biggest “problem” is his low ceiling. He’s going to be a great role player, but do you want to spend a top five pick on that?
Overview: Where as Justise Winslow is more athletic, Stanley Johnson is more physical. The similarities between the two continue, but that’s another article for another day. In the end, much like Winslow, the Lakers are going to have to determine if they want a role player with their top five pick.