thx prempeh, for the review. I'm just being skeptical guys. verse, TPL...have you ever seen him play much. I haven't at all. Can you answer any questions in my original post regarding whether Nolan switched his offense, and why we should believe Johnson isn't just benefitting from a high-octane team with several athletes, much like all the other Arkansas pedigree did. TPL, I'm not suggesting he'd be a bust, by any stretch. But he doesn't sound like an Eddie Griffin either, nor a Lamar Odom, Grant Hill, Jalen Rose playmaker to me, so far. He sounds like Walt Williams out of college to me. Which would be great, as long as he doesn't get another ankle injury. and verse, Van Horn Manning Sampson keep them coming!
i've only seen him a couple of times, and read the scouting reports, looked at rivals.com, etc. the comparison to steve smith is probably as close as i can get, as well. the only problem is i think smitty's 'j' is better, but jojo's driving ability is better - at least it you're comparing jojo w/atlanta's steve smith (not msu or portland). a bigger dermarr johnson with a better shot, possibly. aha! KERRY KITTLES WITH WEIGHT! ANYONE ELSE AGREE?
I don't know many college coaches that have changed their offensive system to accomodate a certain player's talents. If anything, many college systems hide the true talents of players like a Vince Carter, who wasn't much of a perimeter player himself until he was in the league. Basically, what I'm saying is it's not good to judge a player based on whether or not a coach changed his offensive philosiphy for that player. Great players will thrive in any system, whether he's going up against a zone or man to man defensive set. HP, How many college coaches do you know that have changed their offensive system for a player? I can't recall of any. If anything, they'll go to that player more, but it will always be in the confines of the system. Also, the Rockets don't need a playmaking, finesse small forward like a Rose or Odom. They need a skilled role player who will do the little things and hit the open shot. Johnson can create on his own too, which is what we expected from Shandon, but we've seen is not a part of his game. Also, I like his height and length, and with the new hybrid of small forwards coming into the league we need a guy who can match up with them. ------------------ [This message has been edited by tacoma park legend (edited May 31, 2001).]
Did Richardson coach Sidney Moncrief when he played? ------------------ Congratulations Bill!!!! Willoughby gets college degree Willoughby graduation video (In the "More highlights -> NBA" section)
heypee: [half-tongue-in-cheek]maybe because nolen's primary focus is on defense (40 minutes of hell), and players (guards) who are primarily defensive specialists don't make it very far in the nba. how many offensive juggernauts has nolen coached???[/half-tongue-in-cheek]
I'm not saying why he won the NCAA championship. I'm trying to explain how his offense of legions of athletic shooters creates easy stats and simple lanes to the rim for athletes to exploit. The 40 minutes of hell is due to him fielding 10 guys and keeping them all fresh. You can look at UNLV too, and tell me why their players don't perform in the NBA like their draft accolades. Look at Oklahoma.
heypee: agreed. those athletic scorers benefit from a frenetic pace that creates seams in the defense - at least typically. i, for one, don't think jojo fits that dogma. and that may be another reason why he's leaving early, who knows?
Any word on how yesterday's workouts went? I'm curious to see what the Rockets' brass thought of Morris. If they like his shooting, I could see them picking him early at 18. Also, I wonder how Lampley's workout went. He's a classic "tweener" -- too small for PF, not a good enough shooter for SF. Curious if he showed more shooting range in the workout than he did last year when he only hit a handful of 3 pointers all year. ------------------
many, but that is too far off-topic to respond here, and you are missing the point of my first post here. tpl, this thread isn't about me questioning Johnson based on some historical logic. I am only trying to use Arkansas history to frame a critique for others to use in describing Johnson for us. What I would REALLY like is for some eyewitness testimony comparing Todd Day (a #8 pick) to JoJo.
Oh, Johnson is MUCH BETTER than Day. Better athlete, build, shot, and ball-handling ability. Interesting that you asked about Day, HeyP. Classic example of "product of the system". ------------------
Idiots that started the rumor (which site? You guessed it!): http://boards.espn.go.com/cgi/nba/request.dll?MESSAGE&room=nba_hou&id=25472 ------------------ "They couldn't shoot, rebound, or pass, but other than that, they played great!" -Bill Walton
also Clutch, the top article you have for <a href="http://www.clutchcity.net/draft_profile.cfm?Player=49">Johnson's Profile</a> in the Hot Spot section has a bad link. I think the link should be <a href="http://www.tennessean.com/sii/01/03/07/03095975.shtml">this.</a> I love the articles. thx.
so I take it JJ is this year's Jerome Moiso guys ? ------------------ "norm, would you like to buy an indian scalp ? This deal isn't gonna make or break me Norm, so don't jerk me around." Harry Carey "Norm, if I had a mohawk scalp, I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you."
HeyP, In the Arkansas games that I saw, it seemed that the offense ran THROUGH Johnson rather than Johnson INITIATING it. So no, I don't think Richardson tailored his offense too much, at least not the times that I saw him. In fact, Johnson was playing PF when I watched the Hogs. But he is a nice ball-handler, athlete, and shooter. I don't think he's the next Magic or Odom, but he reminds me of an athletic Steve Smith. ------------------
IMO, playing for Houston has nothing to do with it -- being drafted #13 does. I hope we can somehow draft him. ------------------
