Why are you whining, Keldon Johnson is going to be a true Small Forward

[JuegaBonito]

I don't know if he is going to be good or not. However I saw a lot of people crying we drafted another guard. This guy is a true NBA small forward. Have you seen his wingspan? What he is half an inch Shorter than Kiwi was ? Look I have no idea if he will pan out or not but the guy is a small forward , with size and length. Don't get it twisted he is not another guard.

[palangi]

He is only 6'4 3/4" with a 6'9"wingspan.
That is a guard.
Kawhi had a 7'3" wingspan

[Marcus Bryant]

I dont see anything worth bitching or popping the champagne about.

[Dejounte]

He only measured at 6'4.75" without shoes. Exactly 1" taller than Lonnie Walker without shoes. Both Lonnie and Dejounte have 1" longer wingspan than Keldon. His measurements are very underwhelming. I really hope theres something there. He reminds of a bit of a taller CJ Mccolum. For reference, CJ is 6'2.25" without shoes.

[slick'81]

Big ol meh

[NASpurs]

He is only 6'4 3/4" with a 6'9"wingspan.
That is a guard.
Kawhi had a 7'3" wingspan

With those measurements, maybe a small forward in the 60s but not in this era.

[John B]

There were real SF available at 29th. Little, Cody. Why take another 6’5”ish Spurs already plenty?

[Degoat]

He’s 6 foot 6 with shoes that’s fine for SF, Lonnie more then likely will be playing back up SF next season and he’s 6 foot 5

[Kurgan]

:lol Comparing this scrub to Kawhi.

Everybody was excited about Kawhi when he was drafted. Nobody's excited about a soft Euro and two unathletic shooting guards.

[Chinook]

I think he'll be okay. He is big enough to play the three, so folks calling him a two are misleading themselves. I just don't know if I would have gone with him when there were decent forwards still on the board. Really interested in seeing RC's conference. How he acts will show a lot about whether the Spurs got their guys or had to settle when other teams poached them.

[FkLA]

Yeah, a 6 foot 9 wingspan is nothing to write home about.

His hand will be on Nephew's chin when he contests his shot. Or on Durbeta's mantits when he contests his.

[John B]

Unless they are packaging, I hope, some of our guards for that veteran SF

[Cardinal]

His size is fine. Nothing too exciting but also nothing too terrible. I don't know what else y'all were expecting from that pick.

[Dex]

Yeah, a 6 foot 9 wingspan is nothing to write home about.

His hand will be on Nephew's chin when he contests his shot. Or on Durbeta's mantits when he contests his.

Yeah, can’t believe the Spurs couldn’t find someone to guard the best SFs in the game with the 29th pick.

[TimDunkem]

^It's almost as if they should have tried to do that with the 19th pick...

[Chinook]

^It's almost as if they should have tried to do that with the 19th pick...

Maybe. But there's a really good chance he ends up better than Little and Bazley and they were the two guys a lot of folks here preferred. The team SHOULD be able to sign RHJ or Aminu to check combo-forwards in free agency. But they probably won't, because filling obviously holes always seems to take PATFO at least two years to figure out.

[TheGreatYacht]

Yeah, can’t believe the Spurs couldn’t find someone to guard the best SFs in the game with the 29th pick.
Brandon Clarke was literally there waiting for us before we took the broke Jonas Jerebko at 19. He's the best defender in the Draft and is ready day 1 to guard the best SF's out there.

[Atl Spur]

I still want Stanley Johnson......

[Atl Spur]

Pop can make him a star

[cd021]

He only measured at 6'4.75" without shoes. Exactly 1" taller than Lonnie Walker without shoes. Both Lonnie and Dejounte have 1" longer wingspan than Keldon. His measurements are very underwhelming. I really hope theres something there. He reminds of a bit of a taller CJ Mccolum. For reference, CJ is 6'2.25" without shoes.

He's 6'6 in shoes, not sure why people bring up his non shoe measurements like he's going to be playing in Haynes socks while everyone is in shoes.

6'6 is fine for a 3, 6'9 wingspan I pretty good and he's a solid athlete. He should be able to play the 3.

[cd021]

Brandon Clarke was literally there waiting for us before we took the broke Jonas Jerebko at 19. He's the best defender in the Draft and is ready day 1 to guard the best SF's out there.

Spurs definitely dogded a bullet, Clarke has a bunch of question marks..I consider Samanic to be the safer prospect and probably the better one in a few years

[phxspurfan]

He's ok nothing special. Long shot to make it even as a role player, really.

[SAGirl]

I dont see anything worth bitching or popping the champagne about.


Big ol meh
I am there

[Kurgan]

He's terrible. His steal and block rates were not good, especially for someone you want to develop into a three and D player. For example, Danny Green(a typical 3&D) had much better steal/block numbers in college. Also, that crappy free throw percentage(70%) is worrisome for someone billed as a shooter. His passing is among the worst for his position too. There's nothing to be excited about with this pick. There's a reason he dropped. At least, Luka has the Euro mystery to give the fans some excitement. This guy just sucks.

[SpurPadre]

He's 6'6 in shoes, not sure why people bring up his non shoe measurements like he's going to be playing in Haynes socks while everyone is in shoes.

6'6 is fine for a 3, 6'9 wingspan I pretty good and he's a solid athlete. He should be able to play the 3.

Too bad Gary Neal is no longer in the league, otherwise Johnson wouldn't have to worry about being in shoes in those games, tbh.

[J_Paco]

Brandon Clarke was literally there waiting for us before we took the broke Jonas Jerebko at 19. He's the best defender in the Draft and is ready day 1 to guard the best SF's out there.

Except, he's an undersized PF without a perimeter game to punish teams that will sag on him.

[Chinook]

He's terrible. His steal and block rates were not good, especially for someone you want to develop into a three and D player. For example, Danny Green(a typical 3&D) had much better steal/block numbers in college. Also, that crappy free throw percentage(70%) is worrisome for someone billed as a shooter. His passing is among the worst for his position too. There's nothing to be excited about with this pick. There's a reason he dropped. At least, Luka has the Euro mystery to give the fans some excitement. This guy just sucks.

Danny is arguably the best shot-blocking guard in NBA history. It's really misleading to pretend that Green is just a typical 3-and-D wing when he was among the best in his prime. I don't know if I really believe in Johnson's ability to be a lead defender either. He's not going to be Kawhi, but I do think he might end up being like Butler if he has the right mentality.

[cd021]

Too bad Gary Neal is no longer in the league, otherwise Johnson wouldn't have to worry about being in shoes in those games, tbh.

That mofo managed to lose shoeless Mike Miller in 6. :bang

[cd021]

Except, he's an undersized PF without a perimeter game to punish teams that will sag on him.

*Center*

[Chinook]

That mofo managed to lose his shoe and Mike Miller in the same play. :bang

Huh? I thought it was Miller who was missing the shoe.

[cd021]

Huh? I thought it was Miller who was missing the shoe.

It was, got it backwards.

[99 Problems]

Hope your right, because it looked like Calipari had delivered us another Harrison brother.

[TrainOfThought5]

:lol Comparing this scrub to Kawhi.

Everybody was excited about Kawhi when he was drafted. Nobody's excited about a soft Euro and two unathletic shooting guards.

People were not excited when Kawhi was drafted

[kobyz]

His standing reach is very solid even for SF...

[bklynspursfan]

People were not excited when Kawhi was drafted

Or Derrick White.

[LaMarcus Bryant]

Devean George Brown V2.0 FTMFW

[FireMicoHalili]

*Center*
People here expect him to suddenly develop handles and a jump shot, especially at his draft age lmfaoooo

[GreekSpursfan]

Who the fuck was excited when Kawhitter was drafted? We need to stop lying while trying to make an argument tbh.

[r0drig0lac]

Who the fuck was excited when Kawhitter was drafted? We need to stop lying while trying to make an argument tbh.

[Dverde]

He was pick 29, big deal. Spurs got a solid SF prospect. He appears to be a capable defender. More upset at the 2nd rounder, he looks like the undrafted/summer league type scoring guard type. Much rather they grab Louis King and battle Keldon Johnson in practice for a spot.

[KobesAchilles]

I was excited when we got Kawhi. I didn’t care that he couldn’t shoot a lick in college. We traded away choker George Hill for a 6’7 guy with Andrew Bynum wingspan. He seemed awesome to me. Though I never thought he would turn into All-World. But I knew he was better than George “AIRBALL game winners” Hill.

[pad300]

Personally, I'm whining because while I don't mind Keldon Johnson as a player, I really suspect we are going to look back at not picking Nic Claxton (pick 31) and regret it dearly...

[JeffDuncan]

The really nice thing about Keldon is that he's short enough he can be a guard, since it's so obvious we don't really need a small forward.

[keithington1]

Derozan is 6'5.25" w/o shoes KJ is 6'4.75"

[DAF86]

People were not excited when Kawhi was drafted

lol what? Not how I remember it, tbh.

I recall a lot of folks being delighted with finally getting a long, athletic Small Forward. Most were even asking him to start right away.

[bluebellmaniac]

lol what? Not how I remember it, tbh.

I recall a lot of folks being delighted with finally getting a long, athletic Small Forward. Most were even asking him to start right away.

No, they were not very enthusiastic at all.

[DAF86]

No, they were not very enthusiastic at all.


hmmmm I really wanted Leonard


Hill going back to Indiana. Works for me.


That's not bad. I think I like it.


:toast:toast:toast


Got that defensive SF. Nice.


Finally got a legit SF prospect with real defensive potential. Sad to see Hill go, but it makes sense.


hmmmm I really wanted Leonard


Hill going back to Indiana. Works for me.


Finally got a legit SF prospect with real defensive potential. Sad to see Hill go, but it makes sense.


Happy day. The Spurs got a defensive SF, traded Hill to Indiana (good for him) and Tony stays put.


ok a 6-7 SF and a defensive specialist, not a 6-5 guard holy shite?

i like the move


After some frightening rumors earlier, I'm pretty happy with this.

And these are just some of the posts in favour of the Kawhi selection.

[DAF86]

You can check the thread back then, the positive to negative reaction must be like 10 to 1. I don't know why would you lie about something so easy to check, tbh.

[cd98]

I think 6'6 players can play small forward. I mean, a shorter White guarded Kawhi fairly effectively. The great thing about Kawhi wasn't that he could guard other small forwards. Outside of Kawhi, Durant, and LeBron, which small forwards are you worried about? And Durant will never be the same after his injury and Lebron is 35. Who knows when Kawhi's health expires. The big part of a small forward is that he can guard the one and two and three spots. It looks like Keldon Johnson can do that.

[ismael-robert]

Those posts dont really show excited more like indifference or just being okay...sound like this year

[DAF86]

Those posts dont really show excited more like indifference or just being okay...sound like this year

That's as much excitement as you will ever get for a non-lottery draft pick. There's a huge difference between "I really wanted Leonard" and "happy days, the Spurs got a defensive SF" and the "WTF :lol" "are you kidding me?" And "PATFO :lmao" comments we saw this year.

[Kurgan]

Those posts dont really show excited more like indifference or just being okay...sound like this year

That's complete bullshit and revisionist history. In 2011, Spurs fans in general were happy to finally have a real defensive small forward. At that point, we had to deal with years of undersized/underqualified stop gap solutions after Bowen's departure and retirement. "Centerpiece" Keith Bogans, Ime Udoka, Malik Hairston, Richard Jefferson. We weren't celebrating like we just drafted the next Michael Jordan, just damn happy that we finally had a young athletic defender to play at SF and not another old journeyman.

[TD 21]

Why are people still relying on outdated positional designations? Debating whether Johnson is a "SG" or "SF" is foolish because he's both/neither; he's a wing. There's no difference between those positions.

What he's not, is a big wing. Of course 6'6'' is fine for an "SF", but 216 with a 6'9.25'' wingspan isn't going to cut it against the likes of James, Durant, Scumbag, Antetokounmpo, etc.

That's why he doesn't fill a need, because they already had Murray, White and Walker who already are or project as average or better defenders from 1-3.

[Pavlov]

Why are people still relying on outdated positional designations? Debating whether Johnson is a "SG" or "SF" is foolish because he's both/neither; he's a wing. There's no difference between those positions.

What he's not, is a big wing. Of course 6'6'' is fine for an "SF", but 216 with a 6'9.25'' wingspan isn't going to cut it against the likes of James, Durant, Scumbag, Antetokounmpo, etc.

That's why he doesn't fill a need, because they already had Murray, White and Walker who already are or project as average or better defenders from 1-3.
Uh, what available player can effectively guard every one of those you mentioned by himself?

[TD 21]

Uh, what available player can effectively guard every one of those you mentioned by himself?

Morris is the best theoretically attainable option (best combination of being able to adequately physically defend those 1-on-1 and spread the floor), but we all know they'd never sign him (and he'd probably never sign with them too).

Outside of him, there is no good option. Everyone else is either not a good enough 3-point shooter, not physically capable enough defensively or just flat out not good enough period.

[Degoat]

just having guys that can play defense is important, sure size would be nice but Dwhite guarded most teams best players and he’s only 6 foot 5 and did a fantastic job most of the time

[tonight...you]

just having guys that can play defense is important, sure size would be nice but Dwhite guarded most teams best players and he’s only 6 foot 5 and did a fantastic job most of the time
White did do an admirable job, for the positions he was placed into.

[Cane]

SF with tiny hands tbh

[Truth4sale$]

I was initially down on Keldon Johnson because I felt KZ Okapala was the better prospect still on the board with all the measurables, still upset with passing on Nassir Little. BUT!! After watching several highlights, I see he does have a lot of potential. He is not Kawhi and unfortunately because of that small forward void, he will be compared to him. He does not have the greatest wingspan, Okapala and Nassir Little were better. But Okapala does not use his measurables on defense and Nassir is a complete project that is 3 years away from contributing. As a wing player at #29 that some had him going #10-15, he was the smart selection. I think he deserves some run with the big club, I would love to see a rookie make all rookie team from the Spurs for once. He is a great selection for now and the future which was alot of these picks were for, when the Spurs may see a lot of roster turnover again.

[barakz21]

Honestly, if he can even become Verde on D, I’d be happy

[TimDunkem]

Yeah, Spurs have no good options these days. No cap room. No desire for most of the decent, cheaper FAs to want to sign here. That leaves the Spurs the Dante and Quincys of the world.

[tim_duncan_fan]

Honestly, if he can even become Verde on D, I’d be happy

You say that as if that is not a tall order.

[tonight...you]

You say that as if that is not a tall order.
For real.
Verde was a true asset, especially on the D end.
D Green is a player.

[barakz21]

You say that as if that is not a tall order.

It is. I’m just saying that as good as Verde was on D, he wasn’t on Bowen or nephew’s level imo

[EricB]

Yeah, Spurs have no good options these days. No cap room. No desire for most of the decent, cheaper FAs to want to sign here. That leaves the Spurs the Dante and Quincys of the world.


Got a link or a source that says they dont cause, it’s quite the opposite.

[Dex]

People said the same things about these draftees as they have about Joseph, Anderson, Murray, White, Walker, etc...and they have all become productive players in the NBA.

I’d let the cards fall as they may and stop caring about the opinion of SpursTalk “experts” tbh.