Tag: Keon Johnson

Report: Clippers to send Keon Johnson to Trail Blazers in 5-player trade

The Clippers will reportedly acquire Norman Powell and Robert Covington from the Trail Blazers.

On Friday, it was reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN that the Los Angeles Clippers will be sending Eric Bledsoe to the Portland Trail Blazers as part of a five-player trade.

The Clippers will also move Justise Winslow, rookie Keon Johnson and a 2025 second-round pick to the Trail Blazers in exchange for Norman Powell and Robert Covington. The transaction will be the first major move ahead of next week’s Thursday trade deadline.

With the trade, the Clippers will add two proven veterans to their roster with Paul George (elbow) and Kawhi Leonard (knee) out for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers will shed the long-term salary for Powell, who signed a five-year, $90 million contract last year.

Convington is in the final year of his four-year contract.

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The reported deal between the two teams will ensure the Clippers can compete this season without George and Leonard. The team could eventually get them back toward the end of the season, which would only strengthen its chances of making a deep run.

For the Trail Blazers, the trade could mean the team will be sellers ahead of the trade deadline. The team is 10th in the Western Conference at 21-31 and could be looking to restart and acquire young players and future draft assets to build around.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Keon Johnson scores nine points in NBA G-League game

Former Vol Keon Johnson scores nine points in NBA G-League game.

Keon Johnson recorded nine points for Agua Caliente in its 103-94 loss to Stockton at Toyota Arena in Ontario, California.

Johnson also recorded eight rebounds and three assists for the Los Angeles Clippers’ NBA G-League affiliate.

Johnson played at Tennessee during the 2020-21 season before departing for the 2021 NBA draft. He was a member of the SEC’s All-Freshman Team during his lone campaign with the Vols.

He was the No. 21 overall selection in the 2021 NBA draft.

As a two-way player for the Clippers, Johnson has appeared in 15 NBA games, averaging 3.5 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.

Follow us at @VolsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of University of Tennessee athletics.

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Tyronn Lue: Keon Johnson picking up offense really well for Clippers

Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue commended Johnson for how quickly he is picking up things to start the season.

Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue on Wednesday commended rookie Keon Johnson for how quickly he is picking up things to start the season.

Johnson has had a limited role with the Clippers to start the season but had the opportunity to log extended minutes on Wednesday. He registered two points, three rebounds and two assists in a season-high 12 minutes in the loss to the Sacramento Kings.

The opportunity to play on Wednesday served as a tremendous chance to gain real-game experience. He was often seen with Lue going over plays on the sideline throughout his time on the court. Lue credited him for picking up the offense, especially as a point guard.

He has been great. The point guard position is the toughest position. When he is up here with us, he plays the point a lot of times. When he is down with the G League, he is playing the two and off the ball a little bit more so he just plays hard, competes. That’s the biggest thing, the energy he brings us. He is picking up the offense really well at that position. He is going to make some mistakes but you can live with those mistakes because of the way he plays hard.

The appearance by Johnson on Wednesday was just his third of the season. He has mostly spent time with the Agua Caliente Clippers in the NBA G League, averaging 15.4 points, 5.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 steals in five appearances.

Johnson likely will continue to see sporadic minutes in the NBA while playing in the G League on other occasions. He will be in a developmental role for much of the season but it figures to only prepare him for his future in the NBA.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Clippers’ Keon Johnson suffered ankle injury on G League assignment

The timetable for Johnson to return is still to be determined after suffering a sprained ankle with the Agua Caliente Clippers.

Los Angeles Clippers rookie Keon Johnson reportedly suffered a sprained ankle on Thursday with the Agua Caliente Clippers in the NBA G League, according to Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times.

Johnson appeared to suffer the injury after landing on the foot of a defender. He jumped up to contest a shot by Kevin Murphy of the G League Ignite but came down awkwardly and initially did not get up. He was eventually helped off the court and would not return.

The 21st overall pick had put forth a strong performance with the Clippers, tallying 12 points on 6-of-6 shooting prior to the injury. The effort followed a 24-point performance against the Ignite on Wednesday.

Johnson was with Agua Caliente after logging just one appearance with Los Angeles. The team will certainly be cautious and not rush him back into action too quickly if the injury is serious.

The Clippers will be hoping that isn’t the case after a strong debut by Johnson.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Keon Johnson to play for Clippers

UT basketball player Keon Johnson traded to Clippers after being drafted by Knicks.

Tennessee basketball player Keon Johnson will begin his NBA career with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Johnson, a guard, was selected in the first round of the 2021 NBA draft by the Knicks Thursday.

New York drafted Johnson with the No. 21 overall selection. Johnson was then traded to the Clippers in exchange for the No. 25 overall pick.

Johnson played for the Volunteers for one season. Last year, the Shelbyville, Tennessee native was selected to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman Team.

He averaged 11.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game for Tennessee during the 2020-21 campaign. He scored a career-high 27 points at Kentucky.

At the recent NBA draft combine, Johnson recorded a vertical leap of 48 inches, a combine record.

In high school, he was a two-time Tennessee Mr. Basketball, while playing for Webb School in Bell Buckle.

A roundup of NBA sleepers draft analysts are higher on than others

Who owns the most real estate on Davion Mitchell Island? Who is buying stock in Sharife Cooper?

Everyone loves Cade Cunningham. It’s not a hot take for an analyst to say that Cunningham is their favorite player in the class. That’s not particularly interesting to read, either.

But what is fascinating, however, is when an analyst deviates from the norm and ranks someone significantly higher than where the prospect falls in other rankings. What does that tell us about their individual scouting process and what they value? Further, what does that tell us about the potential draftee?

Some folks call it “buying stock” in a player. Others, like ESPN’s Zach Lowe or The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, call it owning real estate on a player’s island. I like to refer to it as a “draft crush” when I wind up higher than consensus in my evaluation of a player.

My process is ridiculously tedious but the results can be fairly useful. I’ve tracked the evolution of more than sixty unique mock drafts, big boards and draft models from trusted analysts and popular accounts on Twitter.

Each placement is assigned a value based on Kevin Pelton’s draft pick trade value chart. I do this because, as Pelton notes, the difference in relative value between the No. 5 overall pick and the No. 7 overall is much more stark than, say, that of the No. 45 pick and the No. 47 pick.

After composing an aggregate score based on each ranking, I can see where each analyst strays from the pack.

I’ll leave the conclusions drawn from these results up to the reader. But if nothing else, this can eventually be used as a bragging point if one writer was higher than consensus on a draftee who eventually ends up outperforming his draft position.

Final 2021 NBA Mock Draft: Latest intel, trade rumors and predicting all 60 picks

Wasn’t it just the 2020 NBA draft? How is the 2021 NBA draft already here? Crazy, maybe, but the league is about to have a ton of new faces.

Wasn’t it just the 2020 NBA draft? How is the 2021 NBA draft already here? Crazy, maybe, but the league is about to have a ton of new faces.

The names that you’re most likely to hear at the top are Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green and Evan Mobley. But the draft will start heating up once guys like Jalen Suggs, Scottie Barnes and Jonathan Kuminga start to find their new homes.

This draft will also be unique in that there will be fewer players in attendance than usual. According to one prospect who recently spoke to For The Win, due to COVID-19 restrictions, those not invited to the green room are not allowed to come to the stage and shake the hand of the commissioner as they have been in years past.

Regardless of who is actually in the building, however, it is certain to be an exciting and life-changing night for the next generation of NBA talent.

Based on conversations I’ve had with scouts around the league, and from reports and tea leaves left in other mock drafts from trusted draftniks, below is how I project the events will unfold at Barclays Center and on ESPN and ABC at 8:00 p.m. ET on July 29.

2021 aggregate NBA mock draft 7.0: Ranking the full class of prospects

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in — and who has withdrawn — from the class.

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in – and who has withdrawn – from the class.

In order to get a better sense of where all of the prospects stand as of right now, we compiled mock drafts from NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Yahoo, The Athletic, The Ringer, Yahoo, NBA Big Board and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win to see where the prospects rank at the moment.

Please note that these rankings reflect the composite score to get a feel for consensus, not our own opinion.

Since our previous update last month, some of the players with the most positive momentum include Quentin Grimes, Joe Wieskamp, Vrenz Bleijenbergh, Aaron Wiggins, Justin Champagnie, Jericho Sims, Jason Preston, Josh Primo, Neemias Queta, Trey Murphy and Bones Hyland.

Among players who ranked on our previous update who have since withdrawn from the draft include Roko Prkacin (32), Marcus Bagley (39), Terrence Shannon (48), Ariel Hukporti (50), Max Abmas (53), Johnny Juzang (54), Jordan Hall (66), Carlos Alocen (69) and Ochai Agbaji (75).

The most notable omissions who remain in this class but not these rankings are Yves Pons, Scottie Lewis, Jay Huff, Marcus Zegarowski, Aamir Simms, Dalano Banton, Matt Mitchell, Jose Alvarado, Carlik Jones, Derrick Alston Jr., Romeo Weems, Balsa Koprivica, Chaundee Brown, Isaiah Miller, Jordan Schakel and D.J. Carton.

Note that for the offensive roles, we borrowed a fun idea from Todd Whitehead (formerly of Nylon Calculus) with help from our friends at Bball-Index.com to create a slightly tweaked formula from the version they use.

The goal of that is not to explain how well a player scores but rather offer context for the way that he was used on his most recent team. This should help you predict how he might be used at the next level.

Meanwhile, you can learn the latest updates on every single prospect who has been included in recent mock drafts by scrolling below.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

Roundtable mock draft: Thunder make 2 trades, get Kuminga and Sengun

In a simulated draft, the Thunder ended up making two minor trades. See how the NBA Wires sites draft shaped up for OKC.

In the second annual NBA Wires simulated draft, The Thunder Wire assumed the role of general manager for Oklahoma City and put together a mock draft with editors from other sites.

The Thunder failed to trade up to the top of the draft and ended up taking Jonathan Kuminga at No. 6. Overall, Oklahoma City drafted based on potential instead of fit and, at times, even over best available.

In the mock draft, Oklahoma City made a pair of trades: The Thunder used pick No. 55 to move up one spot from 18 to 17 and secure Alperen Sengun, and then they traded down from No. 36 for Carsen Edwards, cash considerations and pick No. 45.

Here’s a rundown of each pick. Find full explanations for each and the results of the entire draft at The Rookie Wire.

Hornets Mock Draft Roundup: Charlotte surrounds LaMelo Ball with athletes

The Hornets will likely look to surround LaMelo Ball with shooting and athleticism this draft as our latest mock draft roundup shows.

With the NBA Finals wrapping up on Tuesday, the next thing on the docket on the NBA calendar is the 2021 NBA Draft on July 29. As a result, a handful of mock drafts have come out in recent days with more and more possibilities.

For Charlotte, athleticism was the common theme for their draft picks. As the team looks to fully unlock LaMelo Ball offensively, pairing him with athletes and shooters looks to be the route they could take.

The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie had Charlotte taking Moses Moody, a sharpshooting wing out of Alabama:

“I’ve gone Moody, whom teams are excited about. Why? Because he was a productive college player that fills a genuine 3-and-D need next to LaMelo Ball long-term. I’m a big fan of Moody’s shot making and think this would be about as perfect a fit as you’ll find.”

For Sports Illustrated, Jeremy Woo projected the Hornets to grab some size in big man Kai Jones:

“They do have an obvious need for a young big, and Jones could be available to them here as an attractive option. Jones’ potential to knock down jumpers, finish lobs and protect the paint—coupled with unusual athletic gifts and skill flashes—make him one of the higher-upside options on the board in this part of the lottery. He never an especially consistent producer at Texas, and will still be very much a project for whoever drafts him. This is likely the very high end of Jones’ range, which runs into the teens, but he’s a pretty seamless hypothetical fit in Charlotte, where he’d likely benefit from playing as a lob target for LaMelo Ball.”

CBS Sports’ Colin Ward-Henninger also had the Hornets taking an athletic player at a different position in wing Keon Johnson:

“Charlotte needs athletes flanking LaMelo Ball on the break, and you won’t find a better one in this draft than Keon Johnson, who set the NBA Draft Combine record with a 48-inch vertical leap. He’s a bit rough around the edges, but there’s enough potential there to see Johnson eventually becoming a reliable offensive player in the halfcourt. Johnson said that his shooting consistency has improved since his college season ended, and that will be the key to his ceiling in the NBA.”

Lastly, NBC Sports’ Adam Herman also slated Charlotte to take Johnson with the No. 11 pick:

“An insanely springy athlete with Matisse Thybulle-like defensive potential for disruption, Johnson feels like a natural fit to slide in next to LaMelo Ball and sprint down the floor catching lobs for the half-decade. His shooting needs work, but it’s harder to teach explosive athleticism than it is a repetitive three-point shot.”

However the Hornets go about doing it, the clear focus is to build around LaMelo Ball with this selection.