JaJuan Johnson

[csfansince60s]

And this from RealGM:

"I just found this quote from his old college coach during his jersey retirement:

“A lot of people don’t realize he can bench 330 pounds,” Painter said. “He doesn’t look that way but he’s pretty strong; he’s put a lot of time in the weight room.”

http://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1140013

 

[perks-a-beast]

I think Johnson is a dud. I think his ceiling is a D-League all star but i really really hope he proves me wrong.

[Change]

I think Johnson is a dud. I think his ceiling is a D-League all star but i really really hope he proves me wrong.

He will. I really really hope he proves me right

[slamtheking]

I think Johnson is a dud. I think his ceiling is a D-League all star but i really really hope he proves me wrong.

He will. I really really hope he proves me right

I think he could be a more-athletic Bass with better rebounding numbers.  hopefully better D too.  for a pick in the 20's, that's a pretty darn good pick up.

[Jon]

I think Johnson is a dud. I think his ceiling is a D-League all star but i really really hope he proves me wrong.

He will. I really really hope he proves me right

I think he could be a more-athletic Bass with better rebounding numbers.  hopefully better D too.  for a pick in the 20's, that's a pretty darn good pick up.

Offensively, he should be able to provide much of what Bass provided.  People forget that 90% of Bass's offense came on open jumpers and dunk/lay-ups.  Johnson is a good shooter and finisher already. 

There are really only two questions:

1) Can he figure out the defensive rotations? 

2) Can he physically hold his own defensively and on the boards? 

Assuming he's not a total idiot and puts some effort in, there's no reason he can't figure out the defensive rotations. 

As for the physical part, he could add some bulk over the offseason.  Even if he doesn't put on bulk, his height and athleticism could make up for some of his lack of strength. 

Furthermore, it's not like Bass was a lockdown defender or great rebounder.  So if he can hit an open jumper, finish around the rim, and play fairly good defense, he could be a very good Bass replacement. 

[celts55]

All I know is I saw a number of treads on how the Celtics should get rid of Bradley early last season. He couldn't handle the ball, he had no shot, He looked lost, etc.

My point is I am not going to make a judgement on the little i saw of him last year. I will say he looked like he had a decent shot, wasn't afraid to take it, and could probably run with Rondo. I don't think I've every heard of a rookie who could pick up Doc's defensive rotations.

Doc, doen't play rookies. Pretty much end of story. I am interested in seeing him play in the summer league. Hopefully he has some game, guess we'll find out.

[vjcsmoke]

Exactly. Doc doesn't play rookies so there is no body of work to make a judgment on JJJ this early yet.  He may have srong upper body strength as reported above but what he really needs to work on is his core and lower body strength, that's the kind of strength that will allow him to hold his ground and no get pushed around so easily in the low blocks and in the paint.  Good luck JJJ, hope you had a fantastic offseason improving your overall strength and skills!

[boscel33]

i liked rondo when many didn't and stuck by bradley when people were down on him.  i'm sticking with johnson.  he'll be better than big al, watch and see him develop!

[Celtics18]

For what it's worth, I don't know if I've seen a big get up and down the court faster since a young Kevin Garnett.  

I know it takes more than that to be a player, but, to me, that's the main quality that makes me want to give JaJuan Johnson a longer look.  

[Chris]

What's so tough with Johnson is that he still looked completely lost, even at the end of the season.  You just don't expect that with a guy who stayed in school.

That is both a good and bad sign.  On the bright side, it really does give me hope that its not just a matter of him being overmatched, and there is a chance that, once the head figures it out, the body will be there.  And where he does have the excuse of the fewer practices, and shortened training camp of the shortened season, there is enough reason there not to completely write him off. 

But, on the other side, it really makes me question whether he will ever get it enough to be a quality NBA player.  I don't think he is talented enough to make it on his talent alone.  He needs to be able to think the game, and so far, that has been a big issue.

I haven't seen a player as lost, for as long as Johnson has been since Leon Powe (who was completley lost for his first year and a half...and even beyond that was slow on his rotations).  Powe eventually figured it out, and maybe Johnson will too.  But, unfortunately, I don't think we will know what we have with Johnson until he figure it out.

[gar]

He is quick, strong and can score. Once he figures out the defense that will help; but he also needs to set picks. BBD and Bass both set good picks. The celtics offense depends on this. His mid range is good.

[Finkelskyhook]

I think Johnson is a dud. I think his ceiling is a D-League all star but i really really hope he proves me wrong.

He will. I really really hope he proves me right

I think he could be a more-athletic Bass with better rebounding numbers.  hopefully better D too.  for a pick in the 20's, that's a pretty darn good pick up.

I've never figured out why....If you've essentially written him off as a non-factor...Then why isn't he in the NBDL for the season in the first place?  Is it better to practice him with your players and have him never play (Under 300..almost all garbage minutes qualifies as never playing) Or get 30 minutes or more per game against slightly lesser competition.  Isn't that why the Celtics have a D-League team of their own?

What's strange is that Moore got almost the same number of minutes and games played as Johnson.  But a person sort of felt like Moore was at least part of the team. 

[mctyson]

I think Johnson is a dud. I think his ceiling is a D-League all star but i really really hope he proves me wrong.

He will. I really really hope he proves me right

I think he could be a more-athletic Bass with better rebounding numbers.  hopefully better D too.  for a pick in the 20's, that's a pretty darn good pick up.

I've never figured out why....If you've essentially written him off as a non-factor...Then why isn't he in the NBDL for the season in the first place?  Is it better to practice him with your players and have him never play (Under 300..almost all garbage minutes qualifies as never playing) Or get 30 minutes or more per game against slightly lesser competition.  Isn't that why the Celtics have a D-League team of their own?

What's strange is that Moore got almost the same number of minutes and games played as Johnson.  But a person sort of felt like Moore was at least part of the team. 

Only because JJJ was a no-dress during the playoffs while E'twaun dressed.  Both played some early in the season, and both showed some stuff.  They will get a lot of minutes next year.

[Finkelskyhook]

I think Johnson is a dud. I think his ceiling is a D-League all star but i really really hope he proves me wrong.

He will. I really really hope he proves me right

I think he could be a more-athletic Bass with better rebounding numbers.  hopefully better D too.  for a pick in the 20's, that's a pretty darn good pick up.

I've never figured out why....If you've essentially written him off as a non-factor...Then why isn't he in the NBDL for the season in the first place?  Is it better to practice him with your players and have him never play (Under 300..almost all garbage minutes qualifies as never playing) Or get 30 minutes or more per game against slightly lesser competition.  Isn't that why the Celtics have a D-League team of their own?

What's strange is that Moore got almost the same number of minutes and games played as Johnson.  But a person sort of felt like Moore was at least part of the team. 

Only because JJJ was a no-dress during the playoffs while E'twaun dressed.  Both played some early in the season, and both showed some stuff.  They will get a lot of minutes next year.

Observation really had nothing to do with the playoffs.  Moore was inserted in some games during non-garbage time.  Johnson virtually never was.

[More Banners]

He is quick, strong and can score. Once he figures out the defense that will help; but he also needs to set picks. BBD and Bass both set good picks. The celtics offense depends on this. His mid range is good.

He's probably spent his whole life as the guy picks were being set for, not being the guy setting the picks.

So I say what the heck, throw the guy in there off the bench for a solid 5 first-half minutes per night, and perhaps 20 minutes against the less-dominant teams in the league, but use his strengths.  Put him in positions to score.  Run plays for the kid.  Get his confidence up if we can.

We need to develop a scorer, a star at something, not a bunch of Ryan Gomes'es with good fundamentals.  If JJJ can be a guy that gives 15ppg off the bench and that's his ceiling, then let's start getting him to do that.  Heck, he might get that in 20 minutes.  It's what we happen to need.

I'm not as worried about his defense, especially against 2nd units, or his size, especially next to Steimsma.

And I really do think we could go somewhere next year with a full 2-string front line of

Pierce/Green
Wilcox/JJJ
KG/Steimsma

and a 3-guard rotation that includes Rondo and Bradley.

Sure, Bass would be better than JJJ, but if we're looking to pay Green and Wilcox plus another guard (Dooling?  Rookie?  Moore?  Ray?  FA?), I think Bass might get squeezed out.

So JJJ will be competing against minimum FA's and rookies.  I think Danny drafts a rookie, and JJJ looks good for minutes in the early season.

If the team thinks it can develop players while contending, it pays KG and perhaps even Ray for two years while giving playing time to guys like JJJ, Moore, Bradley, and whomever we draft this year, and that might be at the expense of guys like Bass who want to get paid and might even deserve it.

We'll see if we can win this way.