One Drake lyric for every player on the Toronto Raptors
By Lior Kozai
Stanley Johnson
"“Let me see if this is something I can fix” (Too Good)"
Coming out of college, Stanley Johnson appeared to be a promising young prospect. He made First-Team All-Pac-12 in his lone season at the University of Arizona, averaging nearly 14 points and shooting over 37-percent from downtown (albeit on a somewhat low volume). The Detroit Pistons drafted Johnson No. 8 overall in 2015.
In his first four NBA seasons, Johnson showed some defensive chops. He just couldn’t figure it out offensively. The three-point shot didn’t translate, as he’s never shot better than 31-percent from beyond the arc in a season. He hasn’t been particularly effective inside the arc, either, shooting just 43-percent from two-point range over the course of his career. The Pistons finally gave up and traded Johnson to New Orleans in February for little return.
The Raptors, meanwhile, saw Johnson as a low-risk option and signed him to a two-year, $7.4 million contract this summer. At 23 years old, Johnson may have potential as an athletic wing or small-ball four.
Toronto took a low-risk flier on him with nothing to lose. The team’s renowned player development staff will try to fix Johnson’s jump shot, and with it, perhaps the rest of his game will fall into line.
Like Drake’s romantic relationships, maybe Johnson’s offensive game doesn’t have to remain troublesome forever.