I was happy with Johnson's play last night. Pretty much exactly what we saw from him in SL. It's nice to have a point guard that can run the break.
Really? Last night Johnson was 4-4 from the field, and every basket was a jump shot. He also hit two three-pointers. The kid can definitely shoot.
I don't know if he can "definitely" shoot, but at least he didn't clank his long ball off the front iron. I really like what I've seen so far, but let's not get too carried away; we've all been down this primrose path a few times before with young point guards showing a flash of promise early on, only to flame out thereafter (with one caveat, Johnson appears to be the first one who can actually guard).
Rondo played like a poor man's Rondo his first year in the league. I am having a difficult time not getting overly excited about Armon but damn that kid brings it on the court. If he can keep up his 2 good plays per rookie mistake then I will be most pleased. And you just can't help but like his enthusiasm. I am more then willing to eat crow over thinking Armon would be a complete disaster. He's the opposite. And his college coach should be fired post haste. There is no fucking way that kid wouldn't get his team into the NCAA tournament unless he was sabotaged by an inept coach.
So going 4-4 from the floor, with two three-pointers, doesn't prove he can shoot? You're one tough critic.
A 20 PER after his first 5 NBA games? I'll take it. I see no reason why he can't give a good 10-15 minutes every night. He takes care of the ball and plays defense. It's kind of hard to screw those two things up as he gains experience. He's only 21 years-old, he already has an NBA body, and he is a gym rat.
In all fairness, Armon hasn't shown great range up to this point. My hope is that he has been working on his shot because he knows that is one thing that will keep him from getting where he wants to be. Taking two three-pointers clearly shows he has some confidence in the shot. His form looked decent to me. I would welcome any more experienced analysts opinions though. He will continue to have ups and downs, but each time he goes up it is a litter higher. I am actually a UNR alum, so I have a bit of extra pride in seeing him do well.
Small sample sizes are tough to extrapolate from, especially when he was such a subpar distance shooter from the college three point line. Like I said I'm hopeful that he pans out and at least his shot has enough arc on it to make it a higher % proposition than Jerryd or Sergio's line drive delivery, but I think we just need to let this play out for awhile before we get too excited (believe me, I'd really like to get excited about this guy)
I don't really care if Johnson develops a 40% 3pt shot. I'm more concerned that he gets a consistent 18' outside shot. Extending that range is gravy, IMO.
I have to admit he continues to surprise me so far. I would not worry so much about the 3 point shot this year, but I would expect him to have a decent one by the time he comes in next year. He has work ethic, he is athletic, he has some size, and like a lot of rookies, he doesn't fear anything. He gets in trouble sometimes but most rookies do. If I had to pick a player he reminded me of from the past, I would say, Eric Snow. He didn't turn out too bad.
Man, it seems like he has more than just work ethic. The kid does more than just work out in the gym, he also seeks out veterans and picks their brain. I think that's great. I love hearing things like that.
Speaking of stinking. Check out JB's stats the last 3 games with the Hornets. Yuk! http://espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=3417
I like JB, but a PER of 0.9, even if it is for only 3 games is not good. Hope he snaps out of it, except when they play Portland.
Exactly, JB is going to be stuffed (balls rejected) by Camby, Batum, and LA. JB is going to look bad!
