Stanley Johnson: NBA Draft Profile
The NBA Draft is coming up and the University of Arizona basketball program has a handful of players that will be participating, including Stanley Johnson.
Johnson is a 6-foot-7 small forward that has tremendous athleticism and agility to the hoop. He’s not that great of a three-point shooter, but when he is left wide open he can be a deadly threat. In my opinion, he is one of the most consistent players in the draft who doesn’t lack leadership.
According to nbadraft.net he is a 97 overall who has all the intangibles.
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His biggest strengths are his defensive ability and his strength. It’s hard to find a 245-pound small forward like Johnson because now players don’t feel the need to bulk up. He can easily play a power forward position because of his strength even though his size would be a weakness.
The potential for Johnson is through the roof. He’s one of those players that can add firepower from the offensive side or defensive side of that ball making his team better. He is the definition of a team player who has decent passing abilities who will always share the ball.
Scouts say his NBA comparisons are Kawhi Leonard and Metta World Peace. Both of them ended up having great NBA careers and have won championships. Leonard is a tall and bulky forward who can drive to the rim as well as take the long ball. World Peace was known mostly for his defense, just like Johnson.
Scouts also say his strengths are he relentless when driving the ball and is comfortable when matching up with big men. His weaknesses include being a streaky shooter and can take bad shots. All of these according to nbadraft.net.
From one of my past articles, I wrote where I think Arizona players could end up. I thought he could end up with a team like Chicago, or Los Angeles (Lakers), or Philadelphia.
As of right now, even though the lottery picks haven’t been set in stone yet I think he could end up with any team in the top-ten, but it would be shocking if he gets picked in the top-three. Anything can happen however like when Anthony Bennett was chosen with the 1st overall pick in the 2013 draft over Victor Oladipo and Nerlens Noel.
Teams like Sacramento, Denver, Detroit, Miami, and Charlotte are in need of small forwards over any other position. I think Johnson could be picked anywhere in the 6-10 range most likely by Charlotte or Miami.
Any team that has the chance to draft Stanley Johnson should. He is a great addition to your starting five or your bench. He can play a role as a sixth man as well. Johnson posses the natural ability to bring a team together and make them better as a whole. Not just anybody can do that. He will represent the Arizona basketball program well while in the NBA.