OT - Wes Johnson

[shandeezy7]

Just watched the first 6 minutes of the Clippers - T-Wolves game on ESPN and Wes Johnson literally has not left the corner on a single offensive set, until he got a pass from Rubio and passed up on a wide open 3 to drive to the basket, where he luckily got fouled. I just don't understand this. Is he really that passive, or do the wolves run absolutely no plays for him? He didn't even touch the ball until 6 minutes into the game. How does this happen with a starting SF in the NBA??

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

He simply looks like he is in the wrong league. He gets to the foul line once every seven games or so. No energy..no passion. If he isnthitting from deep...he has nothing else. Cuse guys are not having banner years in the NBA so far. Terrible

 

[NailstheCusefan12]

Rubio can get people shots too. He loves to pass the rock. It's really weird to me. Simply doesn't look like he's adjusted at all to the speed of the game.

 

[suthrills]

I think he went about 10 straight possesions without even touching the ball.
Completely passive and it looks like they run nothing for him.

 

[DoctorBombay]

He simply looks like he is in the wrong league. He gets to the foul line once every seven games or so. No energy..no passion. If he isnthitting from deep...he has nothing else. Cuse guys are not having banner years in the NBA so far. Terrible

And yet...he's still the starter

I was also disappointed- he passed up a couple of corner jumpers which had me yelling for him to shoot! He just seems timid & out-of-sorts somehow.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

And yet...he's still the starter

I was also disappointed- he passed up a couple of corner jumpers which had me yelling for him to shoot! He just seems timid & out-of-sorts somehow.

If he didn't start, he would never play. Token starter. He plays with that classic Syracuse non chalance. Drives me crazy

 

[Ghost]

He can't really dribble - that's always going to hold him back tremendously. I was hoping he would develop a competent handle, but it still seems nonexistent in games I have seen (not watching 2nite though). Admittedly I haven't seen him play much though, and it does seem like he rarely gets touches when he is in.

He needs to play for the Clippers and go all in with their run & gun style.

 

[cto]

This is a post in defense of Wes.

He was always "passive" at SU. We all knew that. He never looked for his own shot. He was always the consummate "team player" (which is one of the reasons we all loved that team).

He can shoot, and he can rebound. Didn't he lead a very good team in both categories two years ago? But he's not a take-charge kind of guy. It would be wonderful if we could meld his skills with Scoop's attitude. Sadly, we can't. I know Wes, and I like him a lot. He is a very good person. But I never thought he would be a star in the NBA. He's just too laid back.

 

[Shermthegeneral]

I was just watching the same exact thing. It's almost like he doesn't want to step on anyone's toes and take over the game. At times when one of the bigs had the ball in the block I wanted him to rotate to the top of the key for the 3 pointer but he doesn't. I almost think that the coaches purposely tell him to stay in the corner or if one of the bigs gets the ball not to get near him because it would cause a double team. Wes is another guy who is totally on the wrong team because of the coaching style and the players around him. Wes was an exciting fast break player and was an athletic freak but the slow pace and half court offense is brutal! Now I know why the NBA's game loses my attention in less than 5 minutes. Like someone else said, Wes needs to be on a fast breaking run and gun team, not one that walks the ball down the court and hammers it into the post 9 out of 10 time.

 

[Andpuppets]

He's not shooting the bell well this year... and thats an understatement. 34.4% FG and 39.5% TS. Without his shots going down he really doesnt have anything else going for him.

 

[SoBeCuse]

I think he went about 10 straight possesions without even touching the ball.
Completely passive and it looks like they run nothing for him.

Yeah, noticed this too. Disappointing. Why do they start him? Not meant to be a knock on Wes although he clearly has work to do. One would think he could exploit Ryan Gomes today.

 

[shandeezy7]

This is a post in defense of Wes.

He was always "passive" at SU. We all knew that. He never looked for his own shot. He was always the consummate "team player" (which is one of the reasons we all loved that team).

He can shoot, and he can rebound. Didn't he lead a very good team in both categories two years ago? But he's not a take-charge kind of guy. It would be wonderful if we could meld his skills with Scoop's attitude. Sadly, we can't. I know Wes, and I like him a lot. He is a very good person. But I never thought he would be a star in the NBA. He's just too laid back.

Yeah he doesn't have that demand the ball attitude, which is crucial for success in the NBA imo.

 

[DoctorBombay]

Yeah he doesn't have that demand the ball attitude, which is crucial for success in the NBA imo.

Yup- Alphas are born, not just made.
No one had to tell Melo to take over a game, whether in HS, SU, or the NBA...he walked in the door & just did!
Thankfully, Dion seems to have that Alpha attitude for this year's squad.

 

[Upstate]

These T-Wolves have a great core of young players. They finally have the talent to keep them in any game.

 

[STEVEHOLT]

Yeah. the entire passive wes thing was never more obvious than going down the stretch vs butler. he was about as visible as an albino in a snowstorm during that stretch.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

He hasn't sniffed the 4th quarter in over 10 games. They are playing Tolliver and sometimes Ridnour with Rubio when they go small in the 4th.

 

[Alcuse01]

I can only hope my life and/or career is summed up by someone watching 6 minutes of me.

 

[sutomcat]

This is a post in defense of Wes.

He was always "passive" at SU. We all knew that. He never looked for his own shot. He was always the consummate "team player" (which is one of the reasons we all loved that team).

He can shoot, and he can rebound. Didn't he lead a very good team in both categories two years ago? But he's not a take-charge kind of guy. It would be wonderful if we could meld his skills with Scoop's attitude. Sadly, we can't. I know Wes, and I like him a lot. He is a very good person. But I never thought he would be a star in the NBA. He's just too laid back.

Agreed. JB did a really good job of coaxing him to be more assertive and giving him the confidence he needs to play his best. That is unlikely to happen in the pros. Hope he ends up in a better situation someday, but if he can't get quality PT where he is today, it might never happen.

 

[kuethstheman]

Just watched the first 6 minutes of the Clippers - T-Wolves game on ESPN and Wes Johnson literally has not left the corner on a single offensive set, until he got a pass from Rubio and passed up on a wide open 3 to drive to the basket, where he luckily got fouled. I just don't understand this. Is he really that passive, or do the wolves run absolutely no plays for him? He didn't even touch the ball until 6 minutes into the game. How does this happen with a starting SF in the NBA??

Aggressive or not, it seems what he's doing is OK with the coaches. A guy doesn't stand still for his entire time on the court and still get double-digit minutes unless he's doing what the coaches are asking. Maybe the hope that he'll get a dump-off and knock down a shot is enough for the coaches to run him out there but they must not be telling him to do anything different. If they wanted him to do anything like run the baseline to get open, he'd be doing it.

 

[Dick_in_MI]

This is a post in defense of Wes.

He was always "passive" at SU. We all knew that. He never looked for his own shot. He was always the consummate "team player" (which is one of the reasons we all loved that team).

He can shoot, and he can rebound. Didn't he lead a very good team in both categories two years ago? But he's not a take-charge kind of guy. It would be wonderful if we could meld his skills with Scoop's attitude. Sadly, we can't. I know Wes, and I like him a lot. He is a very good person. But I never thought he would be a star in the NBA. He's just too laid back.

Agree totally with this assessment. While at SU, he never had the personality to be "the man". He always seemed like a very nice, happy-go-lucky kid who was content to play a role but not take charge. I honestly never thought he'd be a starter in the NBA so he has surpassed my expectations of him. He's drawing a very nice income to doing what he is doing. I don't think he has any further upside, so eventually the T-wolves will draft over him and he'll slowly slide down and out of the league. But until that time I'll root for him everytime he steps on the court.

 

[jekelish]

I always thought Wes would be better off in a Mike D'Antoni style system, where he could run the floor and play uptempo. He's such a great athlete, I wish he was in a position to really put that on display.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

Why are we always wishing the SU guys were in "some other situation". Maybe they just aren't good pros because they aren't that good.

How is D'Antoni's system working out without a good guard? Maybe Steve Nash was more the "system" than D'Antoni..

 

[SoBeCuse]

Wes would be nice guy coming off the bench in DEN for Afflalo or Gallinari.

 

[shandeezy7]

I can only hope my life and/or career is summed up by someone watching 6 minutes of me.

He's a starting small forward in the NBA who averages less than 6 points a game. I love Wes, but that 6 minutes is a microcosm of every game for him. Stand around, wait for other guys to maybe create something and pass to him. It's not even like he's moving around, coming off screens or anything. Hell, when he's standing in the corner and the ball goes into the low post, he doesn't even move to create a better passing angle. Just stands there, and when the shot goes up, he runs down to the other end of the court.

 

[CIL]

The twolves have him starting at the 2, which is stupid. He's more of a 3, but hey, we're the twolves.

Surprisingly Wes is playing due to his defense. Hes made himself into a solid defender - and hopefully can stick around the league because of it.