Perhaps Wes Johnson wishes he’d stayed at Syracuse and played out his senior season. Not that he thought twice about leaving in the first place Рwhy risk injury or a drop in your draft stock by waiting a year, when you can guarantee yourself millions now?
But almost 11 months after his decision to take his talents away from Central New York, the biggest problem with that choice turned out to be that Wes couldn’t control where his talents landed.
It’s largely unknown how Wes’ professional career will turn out. His rookie year has been underwhelming, if not extremely disappointing. Take a closer look though, and you’ll see that it could be going a lot better if his team knew how to properly utilize his skills.
The Timberwolves have a long history of mismanagement. Their current GM, David Kahn, and head coach Kurt Rambis, haven’t been in town for long, but they already seem to be doing a nice job of adding to that history.
Selecting three point guards in the first round of the same draft and trading away the one that actually panned out (Ty Lawson); dealing a promising young power forward in Al Jefferson to Utah for not nearly enough value in return (Kosta Koufos and lottery-protected picks); Stubbornly trying to install a complicated offensive system that’s clearly preventing a young team from developing properly; Constantly misjudging the strengths and weaknesses of their own players. These are all crimes that the Kahn/Rambis regime has committed against the Timberwolves franchise and its fans.
Johnson, who Minnesota fans seem to think is just another failed Kahn draft pick, may simply be a victim of his coach’s cluelessness.
A T-Wolves columnist for Bleacher Report wrote: “Wesley Johnson has been so sub-par that it is baffling. Scouts were raving about this do it all small forward, some saying he would challenge for rookie of the year.”
Yeah, well, it’s kind of tough to be a quality small forward when your coach has played you atshooting guard more than 80 percent of the time (82games.com). Imagine that, a 6-7 rookie who played primarily power forward in college (SU’s preferred lineup last year: AO/Rick—Wes—Kris—Andy—Scoop), asked to slide all the way down to shooting guard. One year Wes is playing on one of the wings of Boeheim’s zone, the next he’s chasing the likes of Ray Allen around an endless supply of picks. That’s just not what he’s built to do.
On offense, the lengthy Johnson has been relegated to the role of spot up shooter, and nothing else. DraftExpress takes an in-depth look at how terribly Kurt Rambis is misusing the former ‘Cuse star.
‚ÄúLast season Johnson attempted 170 jump shots compared to 140 shots around the basket for the Orange, whereas this year he’s already taken 184 jump shots compared to just 35 shots around the basket, being transformed into essentially a one-dimensional role player.‚Äù
‚ÄúFrom an isolation standpoint, Johnson has performed about as well as expected, not having the advanced ball-handling to break his man down and showing even less of the go-to scoring instinct than he did in college. His move from power forward to the shooting guard position has exasperated these problems further, as now he’s going against quicker defenders with lower centers of gravity, making it even more difficult for him to get the first step and tempting him further to shooting over his now shorter opposition.‚Äù
Like most players, Wes has his flaws. While his balance and leaping ability allow him to finish effectively once he’s able to penetrate, he’s not a great driver. Why Rambis thinks the solution to that problem is dragging Wes farther away from the paint and making him drive by quicker players is beyond me. Hopefully Wes will get to play for another coach soon, and the new coach will realize that feeding Wes the ball in more opportune situations is key. Let him use his athleticism as a slasher, making off-ball cuts to get open and catch the ball one dribble or less away from the basket.
‚ÄúThe most interesting thing about Johnson’s decline is not his struggles in isolations, which was to be expected at least initially, but how little the Timberwolves have utilized him cutting off the ball, something he excelled with at the collegiate level. Off-ball cuts comprised 16.1% of his offensive possession at Syracuse according to Synergy (the highest rate among all small forwards in the draft last year), and that number has dropped to just 4.4% in the pros.‚Äù
There are so many things that Wes can do well. Not necessarily great at any one skill (besides percentage shooting), it’s vital that he makes good use of his many strengths. It’s not surprising then that camping out beyond the three-point line has killed his game, as it completely destroys his versatility.
‚ÄúWhile Johnson’s post-up offense was not among his strengths in college, his ability to take advantage of mismatches on the block was at least occasionally utilized, with him scoring a solid 47 points on 48 possessions in the post last season. In the pros, he’s been posted up just six times the entire season even though he’s being guarded by players 1-3 inches shorter than him every night playing the two-guard position.
Further, Johnson’s offensive placement spending almost all of his time behind the three-point line has significantly hurt his offensive rebounding opportunities, with his pace adjusted offensive rebounds per 40 minutes dropping from 2.3 to 1.0, taking away one of his best strengths as a player.‚Äù
We’ve established that Wes as a shooting guard = bad thing. But even if Rambis must play him at the 2 spot, you’d think the coach would at least take advantage of Johnson’s superior height for the position. Why else play a 6-7 guy at guard in the first place?
It would be unfair to make it through this article without pinning some of the blame on Johnson himself. To a certain extent, he controls his own fate – he’s the one actually out there playing. But it’s clear that Rambis and Kahn don’t see a problem with the lanky swingman spending game after game parked 22 feet from the hoop, and they should.
Both front office and player have to be wondering what’s gone wrong. The answer is simple: poor player usage by Minnesota has highlighted Johnson’s weaknesses and buried his strengths. It’s time for both sides to think back on the skills that made him worthy of the fourth overall pick in the 2010 draft, and to start taking advantage of them.
Posted: Andrew Kanell
274 responses to “Is “Can’t Miss” Wes Johnson a Timberwolves Draft Bust?”
I’m not sure where you’re getting your information, but great
topic. I needs to spend some time learning more or understanding more.
Thanks for excellent info I was looking for this info for my mission.
Wow that was strange. I just wrote an very long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up.
Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Regardless, just wanted to say
wonderful blog!
Thanks for a marvelous posting! I genuinely enjoyed
reading it, you can be a great author.I will ensure that I bookmark your blog and will come back down the road.
I want to encourage you to ultimately continue your great writing, have a nice afternoon!
We program a timer that automatically turns your lights on and off, saves both time and electricity!
I really like reading an article that can make people think.
Also, many thanks for allowing for me to comment!
Thanks for finally writing about >Is
Greetings! I’ve been following your website for some time now and
finally got the bravery to go ahead and give you a shout out from Dallas Tx!
Just wanted to mention keep up the excellent work!
Hello! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my old room mate! He always kept chatting about this. I will forward this write-up to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Thank you for sharing!
It’s an remarkable paragraph in favor of all the web users;
they will get advantage from it I am sure.
WOW just what I was looking for. Came here by searching for other
This site was… how do you say it? Relevant!! Finally I have found something
which helped me. Thanks!
What‚Äôs Happening i’m new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It absolutely useful and it has helped me out loads. I hope to contribute & help other users like its aided me. Good job.
Our fully insured and carefully trained employees install your display.
I like this post, enjoyed this one thanks for posting . If you have more time, please visit my site: http://saobang.vn/rao-vat-d2014100408042628/dich-vu/chon-ao-cuoi-phu-hop-voi-voc-dang-moi-nguoi.html
Great Share! A remarkable share, I simply with all this onto a colleague who had been executing a little analysis within this. And the man the truth is bought me breakfast because I uncovered it for him.. smile. So permit me to reword that: Thnx with the treat! But yeah Thnkx for spending time to discuss this, I find myself strongly regarding this and love reading regarding this topic. If at all possible, as you grow expertise, can you mind updating your web site with an increase of details? It can be highly a good choice for me. Big thumb up due to this text!
Hmm it appears like your blog ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I submitted and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog. I too am an aspiring blog blogger but I’m still new to everything. Do you have any suggestions for rookie blog writers? I’d really appreciate it.
Now I am ready to do my breakfast, once having my breakfast
coming again to read further news.
I do consider all the concepts you’ve introduced for your post. They’re really convincing and can definitely work. Still, the posts are too quick for novices. Could you please lengthen them a little from subsequent time? Thank you for the post.
Good post. I learn something more challenging on different blogs everyday. It will always be stimulating to read content from other writers and practice just a little something from their store. I’d prefer to use some with the content on my blog whether you don’t mind. Natually I’ll give you a link on your internet blog. Thanks for sharing.
I’m really enjoying the theme/design of your site. Do you ever run into any web browser compatibility issues? A number of my blog visitors have complained about my site not operating correctly in Explorer but looks great in Firefox. Do you have any ideas to help fix this issue?
Woah! I’m really enjoying the template/theme of this blog. It’s simple, yet effective. A lot of times it’s hard to get that “perfect balance” between superb usability and visual appearance. I must say that you’ve done a superb job with this. In addition, the blog loads super fast for me on Opera. Excellent Blog!
Hi there this is somewhat of off topic but I was wondering if blogs use WYSIWYG editors or if you have to manually code with HTML. I’m starting a blog soon but have no coding expertise so I wanted to get advice from someone with experience. Any help would be enormously appreciated!
It’s going to be finish of mine day, however before end I am reading this
impressive article to improve my experience.
Hello! Do you know if they make any plugins to assist with SEO? I’m trying to get my blog to rank for some targeted keywords but I’m not seeing very good results. If you know of any please share. Cheers!
This web site really has all of the info I needed about this subject and didn’t know who to ask.
Hey! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering if you knew where I could get a captcha plugin for my comment form? I’m using the same blog platform as yours and I’m having trouble finding one? Thanks a lot!
This is very interesting, You’re a very skilled blogger.
I have joined your rss feed and look forward to seeking more of your
fantastic post. Also, I have shared your website in my social networks!
Hello! This is kind of off topic but I need some guidance from an established blog. Is it difficult to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty fast. I’m thinking about creating my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you have any points or suggestions? Thanks
Hello my family member! I want to say that this article is amazing, great written and include approximately all important infos. I would like to look more posts like this.
Glad to be 1 of a lot of visitants on this incredible internet internet site : D.
Greetings! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this website? I’m getting tired of WordPress because I’ve had problems with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be awesome if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
Hello would you mind stating which blog platform you’re working with? I’m looking to start my own blog in the near future but I’m having a hard time selecting between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design and style seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something unique. P.S My apologies for getting off-topic but I had to ask!
Really nice style and good articles , nothing else we need : D.
Hey would you mind stating which blog platform you’re working with? I’m looking to start my own blog in the near future but I’m having a tough time making a decision between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something completely unique. P.S Apologies for being off-topic but I had to ask!
Heya! I’m at work surfing around your blog from my new iphone 3gs! Just wanted to say I love reading through your blog and look forward to all your posts! Carry on the superb work!
You could definitely see your skills in the paintings you write. The world hopes for even more passionate writers such as you who aren’t afraid to say how they believe. All the time follow your heart. “Billy Almon has all of his inlaw and outlaws here this afternoon.” by Jerry Coleman.
When I initially commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get four e-mails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove me from that service? Thank you!
Great website you have here but I was curious if you knew of any discussion boards that cover the same topics discussed here? I’d really love to be a part of online community where I can get suggestions from other knowledgeable people that share the same interest. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Many thanks!
Hello! Do you know if they make any plugins to safeguard against hackers? I’m kinda paranoid about losing everything I’ve worked hard on. Any tips?
Hmm it looks like your site ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I had written and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog. I too am an aspiring blog blogger but I’m still new to the whole thing. Do you have any tips and hints for rookie blog writers? I’d genuinely appreciate it.
Hi! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if that would be okay. I’m definitely enjoying your blog and look forward to new updates.
Hmm it looks like your website ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I wrote and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog. I as well am an aspiring blog blogger but I’m still new to everything. Do you have any helpful hints for newbie blog writers? I’d really appreciate it.
With havin so much content do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright violation? My site has a lot of unique content I’ve either authored myself or outsourced but it looks like a lot of it is popping it up all over the web without my permission. Do you know any methods to help reduce content from being ripped off? I’d truly appreciate it.
I’m really enjoying the theme/design of your blog. Do you ever run into any web browser compatibility issues? A few of my blog readers have complained about my website not working correctly in Explorer but looks great in Firefox. Do you have any solutions to help fix this problem?
Wow that was strange. I just wrote an really long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Regardless, just wanted to say superb blog!
Does your blog have a contact page? I’m having trouble locating it but, I’d like to send you an e-mail. I’ve got some suggestions for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great website and I look forward to seeing it develop over time.
It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d without a doubt donate to this superb blog! I suppose for now i’ll settle for bookmarking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to new updates and will talk about this site with my Facebook group. Chat soon!
Heya are using WordPress for your blog platform? I’m new to the blog world but I’m trying to get started and create my own. Do you require any html coding expertise to make your own blog? Any help would be really appreciated!
Nice blog! Is your theme custom made or did you download it from somewhere? A design like yours with a few simple tweeks would really make my blog jump out. Please let me know where you got your theme. Bless you
Wonderful blog! Do you have any suggestions for aspiring writers? I’m planning to start my own blog soon but I’m a little lost on everything. Would you recommend starting with a free platform like WordPress or go for a paid option? There are so many options out there that I’m totally overwhelmed .. Any recommendations? Cheers!