Miami 1st round pick for JJ was premature

[RAPresenting]

I am feeling in a predicting mood...Johnson is going to come in much fitter (lbs. loss...he knows he needs to) which will make him a better on the defensive end. It will also be his first full season with the Raps and more comfortable with his position on the team..if another sf is not chosen! And if he has improved his shot....weellll....is there anyone on the board that might measure up to that "potential"? No one mentions is passing/point forward skills either. Considering that a lot of teams are actually trying to flee their lottery positions I believe BC did the right thing to acquire JJ who was picked @16 in a better draft. I like his personality as well.

Agreed JJ has a lot of intangibles to make himself a very good player. Dropping a little weight and tightening up his jumper would make a huge difference. If they draft Leonard that is a pretty athletic group on the wing in DD, JJ and Leonard going forward.

[jrdyck]

LMAO at the poll results. Never has the Republic reached such a consensus.

[albertan_10]

I have to agree that Nolan Smith would be a nice pickup, but he isn't going to be around at 28

[SuperRaptor]

james johnson is the man, I would do that trade again a thousand times.

[golden]

Interesting to track the 28th pick (originally Miami's from the Bosh deal) that the Raps traded to Chicago for JJ. Miami got the pick back from Chicago and picked up Norris Cole, a defensive minded point guard. Looks like a decent pick for the Heat, but it's very early days.

Will be interesting to see if BC's bold statement "... there will be nobody remotely close to James Johnson's talent level at that pick in this year's draft...." turns out to be true vs. Norris Cole or later.

[e2thed]

My instincts were correct, I knew BC shouldn't have traded it ,he could have gotten Cory Joseph like he wanted to.

And look at my first post, the Spurs took that dude 'cause they know hes the sleeper of this draft as well.

If JJ becomes an elite defender under Casey then I'll swallow my words with ease. But until that day, I still think BC fucked up kinda.

[stretch]

My instincts were correct, I knew BC shouldn't have traded it ,he could have gotten Cory Joseph like he wanted to.

And look at my first post, the Spurs took that dude 'cause they know hes the sleeper of this draft as well.

If JJ becomes an elite defender under Casey then I'll swallow my words with ease. But until that day, I still think BC fucked up kinda.

It's only a few games into the season but it looks like Norris Cole is the sleeper of this draft. Joseph is 2 and a half years younger and more of a work in progress.

[GarbageTime]

My instincts were correct, I knew BC shouldn't have traded it ,he could have gotten Cory Joseph like he wanted to.

And look at my first post, the Spurs took that dude 'cause they know hes the sleeper of this draft as well.

If JJ becomes an elite defender under Casey then I'll swallow my words with ease. But until that day, I still think BC fucked up kinda.

I'd say your instincts were wrong. JJ has shown, atleast threw the first few games, to be a top defensive player.

[Puffer]

I still agree with BC's statement. JJ has all kinds of talent. He doesn't have a head for the game yet. I think that can be developed and I think Casey can develop it. You can't argue about his skill set when he accumulates blocks like others get rebounds and when he can play strong defense against good NBA ballers. Virtually all his mistakes are mental errors. Definitely trainable.

[Maleko]

I definitely like JJ and the trade was the right move at the time as I have said. Norris Cole is solid, but he has the benefit of a few certain players around him that he would not have in Toronto.

[hateslosing]

I don't even understand this thread. James Johnson is pretty limited offensively but through the preseason and the first few games he has easily been the best defender on the team. He needs to make better decisions offensively, some of his passes are just poor, but I've seen nothing to indicate that he is not on his way to being a solid NBA player, possibly even a starter if he can get a jumper and learn how not to throw the ball to the other team. Seriously, were talking about a small forward who is averaging 1.7 blocks and 6 rbs a game, those numbers are solid, plus he does get a couple assists a game.

Maybe one of these late picks ends up being a world beater, but there is a very good chance BC, like everyone else, would have probably missed that pick.

[e2thed]

I think that if we kept the pick and got Cory Joseph like BC tried to, then we would have our PG of the future, still sucked it up and in this years draft get the franchise SF we much needed.

I see JJ as a shortcut with low risk.

But if BC can some how muster up another lottery pick or even 1st rounder and get Myck or Kendall then I'll forgive him lol.

[SandmanFan]

Is JJ = Shane Battier? The same Battier that many were lusting after in FA this year? Pretty close IMO, so even if JJ continues to play at the same level he is right now, we got a great defender to come off the bench and he should get smarter with age.

James Johnson (Toronto)
Year GP GS MIN FG% 3P% FT% OREB REB AST STL BLK TO Foul PTS
10-11 25 25 28.0 46.4% 24% 70.7% 1.2 4.7 3.0 1.0 1.1 1.8 2.8 9.2

Shane Battier (Memphis)
Year GP GS MIN FG% 3P% FT% OREB REB AST STL BLK TO Foul PTS
10-11 23 0 24.2 42.6% 33.3% 88.2% 1.4 4.0 1.4 0.7 0.4 0.7 1.3 5.0

[MangoKid]

My instincts were correct, I knew BC shouldn't have traded it ,he could have gotten Cory Joseph like he wanted to.

And look at my first post, the Spurs took that dude 'cause they know hes the sleeper of this draft as well.

If JJ becomes an elite defender under Casey then I'll swallow my words with ease. But until that day, I still think BC fucked up kinda.

What does Cory Joseph do that Bayless can't do? They're the exact same player - 6'3" combo guard. It's a bit early to crown anyone the sleeper of the draft considering it's 5 games in.

Johnson brings a lot to the team. He's a decent defender and rebounder - and it's been shown.

[WJF]

James is still trying to find hill role with the team. He was tossed in as a starter when he got here last season and probably felt he would have that role again. Now that he is coming in off the bench he needs to find his spots on offense and things will be more than fine, already he has had games with 6 steals and 8 rebounds, and also games with 4 and 5 assists. Let him drop a few shots to build up his confidence and we will be fine.

Corey Joseph, PG of the future...... Not sure I would bet the farm on that one.

[Nilanka]

I think that if we kept the pick and got Cory Joseph like BC tried to, then we would have our PG of the future, still sucked it up and in this years draft get the franchise SF we much needed.

I see JJ as a shortcut with low risk.

But if BC can some how muster up another lottery pick or even 1st rounder and get Myck or Kendall then I'll forgive him lol.

Cory Joseph flat out stinks. He was lucky to even be drafted in the 1st round (any other year, he would not have been). Some were suggesting that he declared for the draft because he knew he'd lose minutes to Kabongo this year.

I don't care if Joseph's Canadian. I'm glad he didn't end up in Toronto. He's not the solution to our PG problem.

[Nilanka]

Is JJ = Shane Battier? The same Battier that many were lusting after in FA this year? Pretty close IMO, so even if JJ continues to play at the same level he is right now, we got a great defender to come off the bench and he should get smarter with age.

James Johnson (Toronto)
Year GP GS MIN FG% 3P% FT% OREB REB AST STL BLK TO Foul PTS
10-11 25 25 28.0 46.4% 24% 70.7% 1.2 4.7 3.0 1.0 1.1 1.8 2.8 9.2

Shane Battier (Memphis)
Year GP GS MIN FG% 3P% FT% OREB REB AST STL BLK TO Foul PTS
10-11 23 0 24.2 42.6% 33.3% 88.2% 1.4 4.0 1.4 0.7 0.4 0.7 1.3 5.0

At least for me, Battier's appeal was less about his stats, and more about his experience and leadership.

[golden]

Ok, it's a good time to dredge up this old thread - one of those debates which could only be settled depending on how the future played out. At the time BC stated unequivocally that there would be ".. nobody available at the Raptors pick <28th> with the level of talent of a James Johnson...." What do we think of that statement today?

Consider the players available at 28th or later....

Chandler Parsons (38th)
Isiiah Thomas (60th)
Lavoy Allen (50th)
Jimmy Butler (30th)
Kyle Singler (33rd)
Norris Cole (28th)
E'Twaun Moore (55th)

[Matt52]

Ok, it's a good time to dredge up this old thread - one of those debates which could only be settled depending on how the future played out. At the time BC stated unequivocally that there would be ".. nobody available at the Raptors pick <28th> with the level of talent of a James Johnson...." What do we think of that statement today?

Consider the players available at 28th or later....

Chandler Parsons (38th)
Isiiah Thomas (60th)
Lavoy Allen (50th)
Jimmy Butler (30th)
Kyle Singler (33rd)
Norris Cole (28th)
E'Twaun Moore (55th)

talent? I still think no. Desire and brain? yes much better was available.

[NoPropsneeded]

James Johnson has the talent to be a very good defender and game changer on that end. But he's a moron so all that talent is down the drain