Cam Johnson Scouting Report from a die hard UNC fan

[skiz2]

Hey all! I am a die hard UNC fan who tries to post to every teams boards who draft one of our guys to give a somewhat in depth scouting report about them and what you can expect. Note that I am very biased, I want all of my guys to do well in the NBA, so take that into account as I do my best to be unbiased.

To start off with Cam Johnson everyone talks about his age. I want to say that normally this would be a validly huge concern for most prospects. For me, this is only a mild concern. When Cam entered Pitt as a freshman he was 6'5". When he got to UNC he was 6'8" and when he left UNC he was listed at 6'9". In other words, he hit a really late growth spurt and has only played one full season at what appears to be the end of his growth height wise. The late onset growth spurt explains many of the injuries he has dealt with throughout his career related to his hips and legs. I am a firm believer that he still is not close to his ceiling as he is still getting accustomed to his new height.

From his Junior to Senior year, you can see a marked improvement in mobility and quickness which is likely due to the hip surgery he had over the offseason. He has improved leaps and bounds in terms of lateral quickness and strides. Drives his junior year that would take 3 dribbles were cut down to two his senior year. In addition, I think his vertical and overall explosiveness went up as well. He seemed to finish much better off of drives and even had a few posters this past season. I still think all of these areas are room for improvement and present some concerns, but in light of the improvement he showed from his first grad season to second at UNC I think there is room for optimism.

Cam's shooting mechanics are flawless. This is going to sound really homer-ish and perhaps it is, but his shooting stroke I think aesthetically is up there with Ray Allen's. It is just a thing of beauty. It is the same release point everytime. He gets good elevation and rotation. He sped his shot up too making him more lethal. With most shooters when you speed it up their percentages dip down. With Cam when he sped his up he shot at historic levels for UNC! It got to the point where I was surprised if he missed.

In his first season at UNC, he showed a propensity to disappear if his shot was not falling from outside. The one dimensional label was appropriate for him. His second season he found ways to get to the hoop and became much more slippery. He could split through double teams and proved to be more fearless on drives and even showed more creativity adjusting in mid air when bigs would meet him in the air. He finished at a higher rate. His mid range game took me by surprise this season, in particular off the dribble. It is not a shot he is consistent at yet, but will come with time and has shown plenty of promise with it.

Cam moves extremely well off the ball. It is clear to me that Roy Williams showed him video of Justin Jackson when he was at UNC over the offseason and Cam took it to heart. He really makes his defenders work hard and they have to stick to him because he needs just a split second to get it off. I love the fact you all got Rubio as I think he is going to find Cam in his spots time and time again.

In terms of deficits that he can improve and some that may not be surmountable. I think Cam plays with a very high center of gravity. Coach K showed the blueprint of how to slow him down in the ACC tournament by swapping Tre Jones and Jordan Goldwire who are both 6'1" and told them to glue themselves to his hip. This threw off his rhythm. He did not show an ability to dribble once he would catch the ball with one of those guys at his hip. Ball handling will be something that he will continue to need to work on as well as playing with a lower center of gravity, which may just come with time as he is finally done growing. Cam will never be an overly explosive athlete, and while he plays with a lot of toughness he will continue to need to get stronger to fight off stronger defenders. He simply does not have the tools to be an elite defender in the NBA, so just don't expect it, though he won't take plays off.

Overall, Cam would be at his best in a Rip Hamilton like role catching and shooting off screens in the mid range and three (moreso than mid-range). This will require Cam to get into top condition. He gets compared to Justin Jackson a lot, and from a physical standpoint this may be the case, but from a stylistic standpoint it simply isn't. I see Cam as a better shooter, while Jackson is a better defender and better from mid-range. I see Cam moreso as a Reggie Bullock like player with higher upside due to his length.

When he got to UNC and class and practice were not in session, he would be in the gym for 9-15 hours a day getting shots up and doing drills. He works very very very hard. I like the fit with Phoenix and will be rooting for him hard! I hope he fits in well and believe he will have a lot of commentators eating their words.

Hope you enjoyed!

-Biggest UNC homer on realgm

[Saberestar]

Really interesting post.

Thank you.

[bwgood77]

He gets compared to Justin Jackson a lot, and from a physical standpoint this may be the case, but from a stylistic standpoint it simply isn't. I see Cam as a better shooter, while Jackson is a better defender and better from mid-range.

-Biggest UNC homer on realgm

Thanks for the detailed report. What are your overall thoughts on Jackson? I heard some scouts in the NBA thought that when Dallas traded Barnes to the Kings for Jackson, that they actually thought Jackson was the better player. He played pretty well last year and I know. Shot pretty well once he got to Dallas from 3 and got his TS% up over 58% which is nice for a second year player.

Who did you prefer coming out of college more, Cam or Justin?

[skiz2]

He gets compared to Justin Jackson a lot, and from a physical standpoint this may be the case, but from a stylistic standpoint it simply isn't. I see Cam as a better shooter, while Jackson is a better defender and better from mid-range.

-Biggest UNC homer on realgm

Thanks for the detailed report. What are your overall thoughts on Jackson? I heard some scouts in the NBA thought that when Dallas traded Barnes to the Kings for Jackson, that they actually thought Jackson was the better player. He played pretty well last year and I know. Shot pretty well once he got to Dallas from 3 and got his TS% up over 58% which is nice for a second year player.

Who did you prefer coming out of college more, Cam or Justin?

I appreciate the tough question! It is one that my buddies and I debate all the time. I think I give the nod to Cam slightly because I think he has the higher upside due to length and I believe that his 3 point shot is special.

I was so happy to see Jackson leave the Kings, just really didn’t fit in with what they were trying to do. Dallas seems to make their offensive more feasible for him to get to his spots in the mid range where he is lethal.

Jackson has better slip and hip flexibility at the moment. He is also quicker laterally making him a better defender and he is more consistent from the mid range. Jackson has filled out decently as well and I think his future is bright for the Mavs. He had better one on one moves and ability to create for others than Cam at the same stage.

Johnson is stronger than Jackson coming out. He takes contact a lot better. I think he has more explosive leap than Jackson and has more length than Jackson. Johnson has been playing at his size for 1 year whereas Jackson quit growing in high school. Johnson’s release is much quicker and smoother. Jackson may have better slippage, but Cam can get shots off much quicker (sans the patented Jackson floater) and over longer defenders. I may eat my words down the line, but to sum it up, I just think Johnson’s jumpshot is something special and is in a different league than Jackson’s coming out (which is saying something because Justin shot very well in 2017). With the way the NBA is trending I expect Johnson to get more usage due to how well he shoots from deep than Jackson will.

Barnes will put up empty stats his whole career. I defended him a lot. He must just have the tightest hips in the world because I would be shocked if trainers have not been trying to loosen them for years. I emphasize a lot the ability for wings especially to slip and Barnes just is too tight to make it happen. He is too easy to read but may be a more versatile defender due to his weight. I think in the long run it would not surprise me if advanced metrics proved to us that both Cam and Justin were better players when all is said and done. Side note, I think Nassir Little’s future will depend largely in part to how flexible his hips can become as he has close to no hip flexibility at the moment making him really easy to defend.

If I am wrong about any of this, don’t shoot the messenger! Been wrong before and it certainly won’t be the last time. Call me a strong believer in Cam Johnson though.

[MathiasPW]

Jackson has better slip and hip flexibility at the moment. He is also quicker laterally making him a better defender and he is more consistent from the mid range. Jackson has filled out decently as well and I think his future is bright for the Mavs. He had better one on one moves and ability to create for others than Cam at the same stage.

...

Barnes will put up empty stats his whole career. I defended him a lot. He must just have the tightest hips in the world because I would be shocked if trainers have not been trying to loosen them for years. I emphasize a lot the ability for wings especially to slip and Barnes just is too tight to make it happen. He is too easy to read but may be a more versatile defender due to his weight. I think in the long run it would not surprise me if advanced metrics proved to us that both Cam and Justin were better players when all is said and done. Side note, I think Nassir Little’s future will depend largely in part to how flexible his hips can become as he has close to no hip flexibility at the moment making him really easy to defend.

[denial]

If this is accurate, than he sounds amazing. Moving without the ball non stop and then catch and shoot with a stroke like Ray Allen... sounds like a description of Reggie Miller. I'd take that!