Tre Johnson: welcome to the DMV

[willbcocks]

Will Dawkins is the truth at press conferences. I don't think I've ever seen a GM who talks a better game. Hopefully the results follow.

[dobrojim]

re summer league - we've experienced 2 opposite ends of the spectrum in recent Wiz history.
Davis seemed completely overmatched in SL and to the extent that he became remotely playable,
it didn't happen until his 3rd year and he wasn't very good then to put it mildly.

But Sarr famously struggled going 0-fer a bunch of FGAs in one SL game. Then went on to win first team all rookie.
That said, I'd like to believe he (Sarr) is only beginning to scratch the surface of his potential.
We'll see about that. Point being that a few SL games probably won't be determinative about our new guys.
Neither Tre nor Riley will be close to finished products even a year from now. They have much
experience to be gained and games to lose (gotta keep that 26 FRP).

Speaking of which, I wonder how much the kids from last year (Bub, Sarr, KG and AJ)
will get to play in SL. The new guys (Tre/Will) might benefit from the confidence of playing well in SL.
Last year's kids already know they belong even though they are still young and remain unfinished products.
I would be surprised if the rooks from last year risked injury in significant SL action this summer.

[tontoz]

I certainly expect last year's rookies to play in summer league. They all have major things to work on, especially scoring inside. AJ didn't get much time and surely will play.

Tre's skills are much more developed than is typical for rookies, even if they played multiple years in college. I wouldn't be surprised if he leads all rookies in scoring next year and challenges for ROY.

[dobrojim]

I agree they will get some action, enough to reveal where the bulk of their continuing development needs to be focused.
If it's more than that, I will sit back and enjoy watching SL more than I have in the past.

I was saying this <I trust the Wiz mgmt team> often last night to a friend who's not on the Board.

IMO it's a Brave New World out there

[nate33]

Our summer league team should be awesome: Bub, Tre, Riley, George, Sarr, with AJ off the bench.

Heck, they could even let the 3rd-year players play, which would include Bilal, Vukcevic and Colby Jones.

[smoothSeph]

I don't think Sarr or Bub play. Bilal didn't play last year, so based off that I don't think guys set for major minutes touch the floor. Maybe Kyshawn gets a game or 2. AJ should be on the SL MVP watch though.

[dobrojim]

It would definitely be fun to watch. It would be nice ie useful for them to gain confidence. But it would really suck
if someone got hurt enough to miss real games later on in SL games that don't count. Then again, we have a cap
of 4th worst we should be determined to stay under.

[awolfinwater]

I don't think Sarr or Bub play. Bilal didn't play last year, so based off that I don't think guys set for major minutes touch the floor. Maybe Kyshawn gets a game or 2. AJ should be on the SL MVP watch though.

In the following Will Dawkins presser. He specifically calls out how he is excited to see Bub play 1 during summer league.

https://youtu.be/fQuDRvFsdzE?si=89xZDh2So6FZk_Es

[doclinkin]

I don't think Sarr or Bub play. Bilal didn't play last year, so based off that I don't think guys set for major minutes touch the floor. Maybe Kyshawn gets a game or 2. AJ should be on the SL MVP watch though.

I forget the timing of it but I think Bilal and possibly Sarr will be busy with French NT duties in Eurocup.

I know Key hopes to fight his way onto the Canadian NT. It’d be cool if both he and Will Riley proved good enough over the years to make the team and earn FIBA experience together.

[prime1time]

I'm gonna say this again.
He's beal but better with a little Kris Middleton in him. If they can tap in to him tools he can be a plus defender he has the ability. But he can be what beal was supposed to be on O.

Sent from my SM-S926U1 using RealGM mobile app

What was Beal supposed to be on O?

[WallToWall]

Welcome to the Wizards! Looking forward to a great career as a Wizard, and hopefully break a few records along the way.

[prime1time]

Personally I don't like the Beal comparison or the Middleton comparison because he's so much better as a scorer and a shooter than them. In February he averaged 26/4.3/3.7 on 44/43/89. Middleton and Beal at the same age weren't coming anywhere close to that. From looking at his tape, simply by removing the super challenging shots that he was forced to take and having solid players around him that could get him some easy looks he'll in the conversation to be a 50/40/90 player.

The Beal and Middleton archetype fails to take into account just how advance of a scorer he is. In an interview with Peloton, he's talking about how to draw fouls like SGA. If his FT attempts can get above 5 or 6 a game he's going to be one of the best scorers and be efficient.

We'd be way better off using him like in Steph. Teams are going to have to know where he is at all times. Running him off of screens will create open looks for others. As teams fully lock in on trying to contest his shots. And just like Steph - we will use the PnR - to attack teams. If Johnson gets the switch onto a big, he should attack for an off the dribble 3 or attack down hill for a layup. If they trap then you have Sarr in the Draymond Green spot. You can't compare him to guys that figured out how to get 20 a night 5 or 6 years into their career.

[prime1time]

The skill level on this kid is insane. 43/39.7/87 creating nearly everything from scratch is incredible. Watch the games. As a freshman he's issuing commands to his teammates. Telling them to come, telling them to move. His confidence in his game is unmatched. He just needs a sliver of space and he's rising for the three. The minute he steps onto an NBA floor he will. be one of the best shooters in the league. And he's been an elite shooter for a while. So he already has counters for teams that try to play him close and take him out of his game. In the modern NBA this is a guy who will be shooting 10+ 3s a night.

[penbeast0]

If he's making 4+, I'll be on the bandwagon.

[AFM]

Watch on YouTube

[tontoz]

Watch on YouTube

That is what I saw watching the games

I've been listening to the hoops tonight podcast for the last year. Jason goes into the details of the game in a way that's hard to find anywhere else. The downside is that he's a Lakers fan lol. I typically fast forward through the Lakers stuff.

[DCZards]

Watch on YouTube

I like how this guy emphasized the valuable role that CJ McCollum and Middleton can play in Tre’s development. I totally agree.

[tontoz]

The stat that stands out in that vid is that Tre shot 50% on jumpers coming off screens. That is moving both directions. With his high, quick release that is dangerous.

[prime1time]

The skill level on this kid is insane. 43/39.7/87 creating nearly everything from scratch is incredible. Watch the games. As a freshman he's issuing commands to his teammates. Telling them to come, telling them to move. His confidence in his game is unmatched. He just needs a sliver of space and he's rising for the three. The minute he steps onto an NBA floor he will. be one of the best shooters in the league. And he's been an elite shooter for a while. So he already has counters for teams that try to play him close and take him out of his game. In the modern NBA this is a guy who will be shooting 10+ 3s a night.

But the real story here isn't even everything I listed above. It's the crazy amount of time on task and work that it takes to have such an advanced game. He's not the kind of athlete that can just take over games. His first step isn't going to blow by anyone. He's not going to out muscle you or run past you. The work ethic that it takes to have a game like his is the real story here.

Read on Twitter

I know a lot of people wanted Ace, and I was one of them, but this is a very mature young man. He's been intentionally working on his craft for a very long time. And it shows. Given the team we have, I don't think he's ever going to put up massive numbers consistently, but there will come a game where this guy just can't be stopped and he's going to open a lot of eyes. I'll go on the record, a lot of teams are going to regret passing on him.

This is not normal for a 19 year old to talk like this. This is Kobe talk. Just hoop. Nothing else. Loves the gym. For him basketball isn't everything it's the only thing. And it's reflected in his game.

[AFM]

The skill level on this kid is insane. 43/39.7/87 creating nearly everything from scratch is incredible. Watch the games. As a freshman he's issuing commands to his teammates. Telling them to come, telling them to move. His confidence in his game is unmatched. He just needs a sliver of space and he's rising for the three. The minute he steps onto an NBA floor he will. be one of the best shooters in the league. And he's been an elite shooter for a while. So he already has counters for teams that try to play him close and take him out of his game. In the modern NBA this is a guy who will be shooting 10+ 3s a night.

But the real story here isn't even everything I listed above. It's the crazy amount of time on task and work that it takes to have such an advanced game. He's not the kind of athlete that can just take over games. His first step isn't going to blow by anyone. He's not going to out muscle you or run past you. The work ethic that it takes to have a game like his is the real story here.

Read on Twitter

I know a lot of people wanted Ace, and I was one of them, but this is a very mature young man. He's been intentionally working on his craft for a very long time. And it shows. Given the team we have, I don't think he's ever going to put up massive numbers consistently, but there will come a game where this guy just can't be stopped and he's going to open a lot of eyes. I'll go on the record, a lot of teams are going to regret passing on him.

This is not normal for a 19 year old to talk like this. This is Kobe talk. Just hoop. Nothing else. Loves the gym. For him basketball isn't everything it's the only thing. And it's reflected in his game.

That’s interesting. I’m being told he’s completely lazy, doesn’t work on his game, and is just a jump shooter.