Great trades by the bulls the at the deadline. They weren't going to resign TT and they got a draft pick and got rid of Salmon's 5.8 mil WHILE replacing them in the rotation with guys who do so ALMOST (see below) seamlessly.
Warrick really is a wash with TT if you consider his consistency a trade off for the blocks and steals that made TT the occasional game changer.
Murray really is a solid 3rd guard who can do 75% of what Salmons has been doing, BUT I was a little dismayed to see him backing up Luol as well last night against the Twolves.
This gave me nightmares of the 3 small guard line ups of last year and teams scoring at will on us...
Flip is big enough to play the two barely, and Devin Brown can always play in a pinch if a bigger SG is bothering us, BUT, again, neither is big enough to play the 3. (and DB can't shoot...)
Enter James Johnson.
IF he could earn those back up sf minutes, we'd be a lot bigger which would be nice considering we have decided to basically ALWAYS be small at SG from here on out. (Or play DB...who can't shoot)
JJ has been unable to get in a rhythm all season. Appearing quite lost even. But he has shown the athleticism and he showed in summer league and college even that he has the potential to be one of the FEW players who could D up lebron (same size 6"8-260 and crazy athletic) AND play the increasingly important stretch 4 (not a bad weak side blocker the few times he's played down low, if you've noticed).
IF JJ could develop a Deng/JJ rotation would be perfect to compete agst Lebron for the forseable E.C. Finals (Doubt he's coming).
JJ needs to earn these minutes in practice b/c he looks outa the rotation now...as a backup sf and back up or 3rd pf he could be a vital cog on a championship team two years from now if we do even decently in free agency this summer.
SO....wouldn't it be nice if he could use the opportunity that flip and Devin are both too short to play sf? I am sure Vinny is gonna give him at least a little burn soon...he's gonna have to play really well to warrant a bigger look. Let's hope he does.
Oh yeah, If he doesn't step up, it'll only mean more pressure on Rose to score every play and regress as a play maker (Or at least not PROGRESS as he hasn't done this this year in the way he has with scoring). Or, worst case, we just slide out of the playoffs altogether.
Full Version: James Johnson
JJ = a lesser talented version of Tyrus Thomas, so far.
JJ needs time to develop but he has alot of upside up to him to want it!
QUOTE (Balta1701-B @ Feb 20 2010, 07:27 AM) 
JJ = no talent; doesn't belong in the NBA so far.
Fixed that
JJ already is way ahead of Tyrus perimeter skills wise and also isn't rail thin and too light to bang with the big boys like TT was and for the most part still is.
I hate to say it but he's built like Lebron. He's 6'8 260 and he runs and dribbles like a guard. He's a point forward who could play full time pf in a pinch. DO NOT read that as me saying JJ could be Lebron. He just has a similar body type. But, a (much much much much much) lower ceiling of Lebron--an athletic combo forward good for some sportscenter type plays every night.
He plays too fast right now. Or too tentatively. He's thinking too much sometimes. But usually not enoug. I think he's gonna need a summer or two of work to get his game even remotely into shape, but he still could give us something now. You can't teach size, or so they say.
I hate to say it but he's built like Lebron. He's 6'8 260 and he runs and dribbles like a guard. He's a point forward who could play full time pf in a pinch. DO NOT read that as me saying JJ could be Lebron. He just has a similar body type. But, a (much much much much much) lower ceiling of Lebron--an athletic combo forward good for some sportscenter type plays every night.
He plays too fast right now. Or too tentatively. He's thinking too much sometimes. But usually not enoug. I think he's gonna need a summer or two of work to get his game even remotely into shape, but he still could give us something now. You can't teach size, or so they say.
QUOTE (sport1016 @ Feb 20 2010, 07:01 PM)
JJ already is way ahead of Tyrus perimeter skills wise and also isn't rail thin and too light to bang with the big boys like TT was and for the most part still is.
I hate to say it but he's built like Lebron. He's 6'8 260 and he runs and dribbles like a guard. He's a point forward who could play full time pf in a pinch. DO NOT read that as me saying JJ could be Lebron. He just has a similar body type. But, a (much much much much much) lower ceiling of Lebron--an athletic combo forward good for some sportscenter type plays every night.
He plays too fast right now. Or too tentatively. He's thinking too much sometimes. But usually not enoug. I think he's gonna need a summer or two of work to get his game even remotely into shape, but he still could give us something now. You can't teach size, or so they say.
I hate to say it but he's built like Lebron. He's 6'8 260 and he runs and dribbles like a guard. He's a point forward who could play full time pf in a pinch. DO NOT read that as me saying JJ could be Lebron. He just has a similar body type. But, a (much much much much much) lower ceiling of Lebron--an athletic combo forward good for some sportscenter type plays every night.
He plays too fast right now. Or too tentatively. He's thinking too much sometimes. But usually not enoug. I think he's gonna need a summer or two of work to get his game even remotely into shape, but he still could give us something now. You can't teach size, or so they say.
James Johnson makes Tyrus Thomas look smart.
jj looked good in garbage time tonight
This is a "lo-fi" version of our main content. To view the full version with more information, formatting and images, please click here.