The Wizards selected Tre Johnson #6 overall so we break down his game! | Washington Wizards Podcast

The Wizards selected Tre Johnson #6 overall so we break down his game! | Washington Wizards Podcast

what is up Wizards fans welcome in to another Believe in Wizards podcast i’m Matt Mno i’m pleased to be joined here today by Kenan Wack the Wizards just took Trey Johnson with the number six overall pick had him number three on my own individual board so I’m super excited about the pick here keenan uh covers uh Texas basketball uh for Inside Texas part of the on- three network also does some great work for Mavs on SI and and draft coverage over at SI as well so he knows Trey Johnson’s game as anybody as well as anybody here so uh Keenan thank you for coming on and talking a little Trey Johnson with us
dude of course man i’ve been following Trey since he was a sophomore in high school in the Dallas area so I know his game pretty well at this point yeah and uh very excited that uh he ended up in an Eastern Conference team where I think he has a quicker chance to get a max
yeah I I think he’s going to have an immediate pathway to some minutes here and I’m expecting some uh some big production here overall so I guess just start nice and simple here uh do you like the pick overall for the Wizards it seems like you do but I want to hear you know from you uh directly like is Trey Johnson a steal for them at at you know a like the sixth pick doesn’t seem like you should be able to get a steal but like uh did the Wizards uh you know work out pretty well for them here
yeah I think it’s a really good match for both parties actually because like you said the thing that I like about the Wizards right now is they have a lot of I think talented guys that can be role players i think Koulali can be a very he’s already a very good defensive player you have Sar you have Carrington you have guys that you can build around and Trey is the thing that they were kind of missing is maybe a dynamic movement shooter a guy that can be a knockdown shooter can create for himself uh and that’s what Trey Johnson is uh overall you know he’s just a really really advanced shot maker super talented offensive player and several games this year that I saw in person and you know that I covered um on watching on TV i mean he’s maybe the best offensive player in this class overall just because of his ability to hit contested shots and score in a in a myriad of ways he really is just a guy that can just he just puts the ball in the basket you know what I mean it’s sometimes hoops are really complex and sometimes it’s simple and sometimes you just look at a guy and you go “Yeah this guy just gets the ball in the basket really really well.” And I love to pick for the Wizards uh I think in a lot of drafts Trey is a top three guy and I had him five on my board I believe so uh yeah I think six is a really good spot for him i think it’s a beautiful match for for both parties really
you mentioned the shooting there obviously that’s that’s a huge thing it pops off the charts you know when you just look at the stats but I think some people maybe pigeon hold him as just a shooter leading up into this draft a little bit and he’s a great one so if you get that at a minimum that’s an amazing place to start the Wizards need some shooting so I think he helps them there day one but I just think there’s a lot more there i buy him as a playmaker for himself and others i buy him putting the ball on the floor i buy him as a passer uh but you saw this more than I did here some of this to me came down to just role and offensive fit and system and roster construction around him so I think just seeing him on like an open NBA court I think there’s so many more things we didn’t really get to see this year at Texas that I think he’ll be able to do but you tell me if if that’s uh fair or not
yeah definitely i think he’s a very you know what he’s very good at doing is they they double team him a lot this year or they would blitz him
and he was very good at passing out of those situations and his assist numbers don’t pop off the page but I think a lot of that is due to poor spacing and lack of finishing and and being able to convert from his teammates like he made a lot of good made some very impressive skip passes if you watch the Arkansas game there’s a few instances where he’s you know being swarmed and he makes a really good read and the other player just doesn’t convert the shot so I think if he were on a you know a better team with better spacing he he would have had much higher assist numbers and and that’s kind of what they talk about with his defense as far as being a weakness i think a big reason why he wasn’t an elite defender is that he expended so much energy on the offensive end every possession trying to get open trying to create a shot for himself sometimes trying to create shots for others that I I think his defense can improve if he’s given more help on the offensive end he’s not forcing all these shots just trying to get to his spots every single time because you know uh the the Texas offense last year was was kind of unimaginative right like they would run an action
maybe a secondary action but there was just not a lot after that you know they’d maybe run a slip screen they’d run some kind of pick and roll where the ball handler shoots the ball it just wasn’t a very complex offense and I think if you give him an offense where he’s coming off pin down screens or he’s he’s able to use his movement shooting ability I think he’s going to be able to be you know I’m I don’t I don’t think he’s going to be an elite wing stopper really necessarily but he’s a guy that can at least compete on the defensive end of the floor because he’s a very high motor guy and he’s a high energy guy and that high energy that endurance really translates to a guy that has to run around and shoot the ball a lot you know
i think he’s a decent athlete he’s got good positional size so can he guard ones and twos like I I don’t see any reason why he can’t at least be a neutral presence on that end of the floor and when a guy’s
doing what he does offensively if he’s just not getting hunted relentlessly I think that’s a win for you
yeah no for sure i agree with that and I think again too like you know he’s he expended just so much energy just trying to just trying to get open you know and just trying to create shots for other guys and himself and I I really think that he can be a guy that you know at his peak is scoring 25 points per game because the the thing that really pops out too is like obviously the shot making is advanced but the efficiency is there too despite playing in a system that was not conducive to efficient shooting right he shot 40% from three on almost seven attempts per game like the guy was nails and he hit big shots in big moments he’s not afraid of the big moment and that’s kind of going away from real you know on like real strict analysis I guess but he he really has the mentality of a guy that can be the alpha on a on a young team and
and take the mantle as far as being the leading scoreer being the guy the go-to guy in in end ofame situations and and kind of a closer and he showed a lot of that and there’s a there’s a really interesting sequence he had against Yukon where he didn’t it wasn’t even a scoring sequence for him it was he he basically cuts across he gets the ball kuma sets a screen for him he goes to the other side hits a hits a crossover dribble sorry and he drives the basket and uh he kicks it out to Kuma who then kicks it to I think Julian Larry julian Larry misses the three but Trey jumps up just stays in the dunker spot tips it out
and it results in a in an assist again when Trey passes it to somebody and they score so the high motor thing I think is very underrated for a guy like Trey like he’s just really really energetic on the floor and I think that will translate to the defensive end once he’s given more tools to work with on offense
you mentioned sort of the willingness to to be an alpha there right like of to to be the guy on a team and I don’t know Wizards fans listening to this are probably going to be sick of me mentioning this but it really clicked for me seeing him in person this year uh in Dayton in the first four it’s the brightest lights you know obviously like the first four games aren’t as huge as some of the you know air quotes you know main NCAA tournament games but it’s a big deal you got your team in the tournament the situation’s important and just for for Trey to be able to do what he did and just sort of take over I I thought was big and he wasn’t like his best game of the year or anything like that but just the the mindset was big there was a situation where he wanted the ball late you know multiple possessions in a row and then like Traymond Mark took a really bad corner jumper early in the clock and Trey was like “No no like that comes back through me and like kind of patted him on the head and this is a multi-year you know high productive college basketball player he’s talking to like that.” Yeah i thought that says a lot about him and Mark didn’t take it the wrong way so it clearly wasn’t you know this is my show like big timing you it was just like a hey like let me get you a better look than that and I thought that was really cool to see
yeah the leadership aspect is is really real with Trey Johnson you know even at the beginning of the season before he was the 20 points per game guy uh in the SEC he was you know other players were deferring to him in practice he was a guy that was taking that leadership role seriously early on in uh in his career at Texas uh and I and I talked to you know players and scouts and assistants and they all said the same thing that he’s a guy that is willing to take that leadership role very seriously very early on and he’s you know if you watch I’m sure you watch you’re you’re the Wizards guy the uh introductory press conference where like what are your hobbies he’s like I don’t have any hobbies
yeah basketball
that’s real man like yeah and a quick story I always tell whenever I talk about Trey is when he was 15 years old playing for Lake Highlands before he went to Link Academy he was at Lake Highlands High School in Dallas and they were playing against uh Richardson High School whose backcourt was Kase Wallace NBA champ Kase Wallace and Ryland Griffin uh who played for Alabama and Kansas now he’s going to Texas&M and they were the number one team in the state I believe maybe the number one public school in the country at the time richardson was and Case Wallace as you know is an elite defensive player like that is his calling card he is a locked down on ball guy and Trey Johnson is a 15-year-old and Kase’s a senior and Trey scored 39 points
i love hearing stuff like that
i mean it was just like it was like his coming out party and and Caliperry was at the game because he recruited Case Walls and he I think they offered him very quickly after that game and
yeah smart smart for sure and you know Trey has had the most successful freshman season for a Texas Longhorn since Kevin Durant it’s not arguable and there have been some very good freshman that have come through you know what I mean like the guys like Miles Turner guys like Jared Allen uh they’ve they’ve recruited very well five stars even during the Shaka Smart era which wasn’t like as as onc court success they put a lot of dudes in the NBA and Trey is he was the reason they were competitive in the SEC at all last year i mean Arthur Kuma had some moments here and there but I mean truly it was the Trey Johnson show and you know I I watched him in person against Kentucky and that was another game where he just really took over and it was just kind of his show and what I really like about Trey like you kind of mentioned he’s a guy that doesn’t get a ton of credit he’s not a lead guard right i don’t see him as a lead guard at the next level i see him as an offball guard but he is a guy that when he gets the ball in his hands can create for himself and has opportunities to create for others again if these guys would just have converted a few more shots he might end up with four assists a game instead of two and a half you know
mhm yeah it makes a big difference right like it’s these weren’t elite shot makers next to him like no disrespect to Arthur Kuma and Kaden Cheddrick and some of these guys like that’s just not what you were relying on them to go out there to do and um yeah I I I totally agree with you there the defense let’s go back to that for just a second here like for someone like him if he is always going to be uh a high volume offensive guy we me I mentioned just be you know wanting him to be neutral and things like that if you saw a way for him to be productive as an NBA defender is he better on ball is he better off ball or just wasn’t really great at either this year i guess sort of break us down a little bit more on on where he’s at defensively and if there are anywhere areas where he stands out is he going to force a lot of turnovers like um what’s sort of his his strong suits on the defensive end so far
well I think his size lends itself to being a guy that can possibly guard the opposing wing as well right he’s 66 610 wingspan like that’s a big deal he has 610 wingspan i think that’s you know I wouldn’t say he’s a guy that’s going to create turnovers and kick the ball into transition much but um I I think he was probably better off the ball than he was on the ball this year but I mean again like those long arms it can lead to getting your hands into passing lanes errant passes can be picked off and uh again Trey’s not Trey’s a good athlete he’s not a he’s not a transcendent athlete but he’s he’s very good and you know again I I’ve harped on it but I really think we we didn’t see the best of his defense just because of the situation he was in with how much he had to do on the offensive end i mean he was the entire offense for that team last year he took I don’t know how many shots per game but you know I mean I think he shot 42% from the field and he something like that and he was just constantly having to do something on the offensive end i mean he was getting rebounds i think he
rebounds game by the way that’s a lot that’s a lot of energy expended yeah man and that and as you know you watch SEC basketball it’s a very physical conference i mean those guys are beating the crap out of each other constantly it’s just a physical
bodies banging into each other
very good athletes i mean you saw the first round of the draft how many you know or the both rounds of the draft how many guys ended up you know going in the first two rounds and undrafted free agents things like that so when you’re in a conference with the Auburns of the world the Florida of the world the Alabamaas and the you know even even teams that weren’t as competitive like South Carolina they were very physical physical basketball team it’s just
But I mean Trey’s going to get that in the NBA too you know the NBA especially you know uh when the Wizards start making the playoffs which not be this year but you know in the next three years let’s say that’s when it gets physical again and and I think having that experience in the SEC may even translate a couple of years later just because he’s used to being bodied and and not getting easy looks right like Trey had to take so many contested shots this year so many bad looks so many into the shot clock nobody’s doing anything he’s the only guy moving on the offensive end there’s no offball action and so he was responsible for so much on the offensive end i I just really think his defense can be serviceable which is all you really need it to be if he’s going to be the offensive player that he projects to be
can you see him competing for a starting spot you know from day one essentially
i think it depends on what they do with CJ McCollum
uh if they I don’t know what the deal I don’t know if they’re going to keep him or move move on from
at least for the first half of the year would be my guess
okay yeah yeah yeah so I think he’s probably going to be maybe a sixth man but I like that for him i I also like the idea of him learning from CJ McCollum i think
that can be you know because CJ was a guy that didn’t really come into the league as a point guard but developed more lead guard skills as he went along and I think Trey is a guy that’s that can do that as well again I don’t see him as a point guard or lead initiator really but if he can be a connective passer a guy that can be a secondary creator for the for the Wizards on top of being a 20 let’s say rookie year I imagine he probably averages something like 15 points and that’s a lot for a rookie and I think and and on decent efficiency I think that that’s a really successful rookie season if he can if he’s able to do that and
again like I’ve said I really like some of the pieces Washington’s had uh Washington has right now i like the SAR pick last year i thought that that was a good selection where they got him uh even at two in a class where there was a lot of question marks i thought he was one of the more sure answers and I like Carrington a lot you know I like uh I like uh Koulibali a lot so there’s there’s infrastructure there that maybe people weren’t expecting there to be as much uh infrastructure just because the team didn’t wasn’t successful the last couple of seasons but I I really am glad he landed there as opposed to some of the other spots he could have landed i think I think and what I was saying on on the board uh for the website I write for is that he has a pretty quick path to being a starter and being a guy that can maybe earn a max contract like fairly quickly i I love that if that uh is the case that means he’s worked out very well for the Wizards which uh we would be happy to see here i agree with you i think um just start him easy and just let him focus on a few things and then Yeah I agree cj is a good mentor because he just does a lot of kind of crafty stuff there that I I think you know Johnson’s a bigger better athlete so if he can get the craft down too that’ll make him that much more dangerous and
if you average 15 points per game as a rookie even on a really bad team that puts you probably you know pretty safely in rookie of the year at least all you know first team rookie
yeah yeah
intention here for sure any I don’t love player comps you know in like the most basic sense but but any sort of similar role player you can see him emulating here uh longer term
yeah there’s a few guys that I’ve heard and that I agree with um old school comp that I I had to go back and watch film on because I wasn’t familiar was Allen Houston uh for the Knicks i think that that you know they had very similar freshman numbers uh like like eerily similar uh very similar physical body type i mean Allen Houston was a little more built but similar height um similar role you know just kind of a three-level scorer that can handle the basketball that can be you know a leading scorer type of guy um as far as current guys Tyler Hero is a guy I’ve heard um that I think makes sense um I think he’s he from the outside he’s kind of a buddy healed type i think he’s got some elements of Cam Thomas although I think that Trey is going to be a more efficient scorer than Cam maybe was i mean with a few games here and there where he’s not great but that’s going to happen for a rookie you know you’re going to have games where you don’t shoot well hell i mean Caitlin Clark has had rough games and you know she’s one of the better players in the WNBA so it’s it’s it’s a thing where if Trey can get the open looks um he’s going to hit some of the contested shots too but if you can get him consistently open looks and build that confidence situation where you could be really cooking with gas faster than you think and so those are kind of the roles I think of when I think of when I think of Trey Johnson and heard Ray Allen too but I think it’s hard to put those kind of expectations on a guy that early but you know just an absolute dynamic shot maker and a guy that you know I’ve covered him for a while and just very genuine very much who he is he’s he’s not trying to front when he says he doesn’t have hobbies outside of basketball I think he means it i think he is a hoop head to the core and he’s just a guy that really really wants to compete and really hates losing that’s good uh that’ll fit in great is for a team that’s done a lot of losing so hopefully that’s the guy to to help us turn it around i like the Tyler Hero comp he’s got that kind of wiggle
like he’s obviously a buddy healed caliber shooter but I don’t think we see Buddy you know create much or put the ball in the deck more whereas Hero
you know he’s doing a lot offensively made an all-star team this year i think in in year six I want to say for him you know he’s
24 five and five guy like if if uh Trey can do that I think um you know we’re we’re cooking with gas at this point kenan anything else Wizards fans should know about Trey Johnson here before we let you go
yeah I mean I just if you’re a Wizards fan and you’re looking for a reason to get excited i I told you this over over DMs but watch his game against Arkansas and Fagatville that is a really good example of all the ways he can score he scores out of DHO’s he scores uncontested shots he attacks the basket he splits double teams he does pretty much everything you would want out of a superstar that can create for himself and and score and score at a high clip efficiency i would watch that Arkansas game it will fire you up about what he’s capable of
that’s awesome man yeah I that was a huge one at the moment I was just sitting in my basement or my living room just like “Oh oh oh he did that oh he can do that too okay that’s great.” Yeah man it was It was really fun to watch i wasn’t there in person but I I was very excited and I was like “Yeah this is an NBA level shot maker.” No question
that’s awesome uh if people want some more Texas coverage hopefully you guys are sending some more uh you know fivestar first round picks our way in the next couple years here uh where can people find your work
yeah uh I’m Keenan WAC on Twitter and uh you can find me on uh Inside Taxes of the Onree Network you can find me on uh Mavs SI on SI Network and then NBA draft on SI Network i’m just kind of writing for all them all the time i’m constantly putting stuff out i do a show for on three so um I’m always working
kenan is a great follow on Twitter go check him out always just great stuff i I enjoy the just the general draft coverage as well because I think you make me think about things I hadn’t already thought about with guys so um I appreciate you putting just interesting stuff uh out into the ether there and Keenan thanks for coming on and doing this with us and we’re excited we’ll take uh good care of your guy here for you and let’s check in uh at some point down the road here just with a a retrospective of how this uh this pick worked out for the Wizards definitely man really appreciate you having me on and yeah definitely take care of our guy the uh the Texas fan base and Texas graduates uh love the kids so take care of them
we’ll do all right everybody you know the drill if you’re watching this on YouTube uh please go click the like button for us rate review subscribe all that good stuff and we will

Keenan Womack of Inside Texas, part of the On3 Network, and NBA Draft at SI joins Matt Modderno to break down the game of Texas freshman Tre Johnson. We go through his strengths, areas for improvement, likely role, potential ceiling, Day 1 expectations, his mindset and work ethic, player comps, and his fit with Washington.

0:00 – Intro
1:04 – Is Tre Johnson a steal?
3:15 – Other than shooting, what does Johnson bring to the Wizards?
7:50 – Johnson’s leadership and mentality
9:05 – Tre v. Cason Wallace
9:58 – Elite production at Texas
11:15 – Can he defend?
14:20 – is he a Day One starter?
16:47 – Player comparisons
19:20 – Closing thoughts
20:20 – Keenan’s work

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