Frank Staying; Nets Eying James Johnson

by Tommy Dee on April 27th, 2009 at 10:18 am


A source familiar with the Nets has informed TKB that Lawrence Frank will remain as head coach of the team to start the 2009-10 season.

The source said the team is also, initially, very high on Wake Forest small forward James Johnson. Currently, the Nets sit at the 11th position in the draft, three behind the Knicks. Chad Ford has nailed Johnson to the Nets as well.

ESPN has this to say about Johnson.

“…Johnson is a very intriguing prospect. He’s a great athlete, has a NBA body and he’s very skilled. He can play multiple positions on the floor and does a bit of everything on the offensive end. Johnson has some flaws. His basketball IQ is still fairly raw and he can get out of control at times. But it’s probably a good decision. He’s already 22 years old and was really impressive in the second half of the season. He’ll likely go somewhere between 10 and 20 on draft night…”

Johnson reminds me a lot of Wilson Chandler in that he can guard 4s and has a perimeter game, but he’s a really natural 3. No word out of Knicks camp, but I’m interested to see if they give Florida’s Nick Calathes a long look. Calathes could be had further down in the draft and does have the long, athletic,  pass-first qualities that D’Antoni loves in his point guards.
  • Chris Alvino

    I saw Johnson play live when Wake Forest blasted BC in Boston.

    Johnson plays a lot stronger around the hoop than Chandler. I was very impressed with the power he played with during that game. He threw down some ferocious slams. I knew about Teague going into the game, but I did not know anything about Johnson. I did not realize he was a big prospect. He opened my eyes. The Nets need a power forward in the worst way.

    I see the Nets making a push for Paul Milsap this summer.

    Also, I think they should attempt to trade one of their backup centers, i.e. Sean Williams or Josh Boone for a second round pick. Use that pick on a backup point guard with a scoring touch.

  • Chris Alvino

    Maybe a Ty Rice from BC?

  • CircleLimit4

    I’m with you Tommy. Calathes has been on my Knick radar all year. If we trade down, we should give him a look. Outside Rubio, he might be the best passer in the draft. I just hope he’s really 6’6”

  • Chris Alvino

    I have to be honest. I have not seen much of Calathes. His stats are staggering though. His size also appears to be staggering. Interesting prospect.

    With all of these guards that can be available, the private workouts that the Knicks hold will be very telling.

  • Chris Alvino

    His statistics are very good. And he looks like he has the frame to add some muscle. While he might have trouble staying with quicker guards, he looks like he can create mis-matches for the opposition.

    If he cannot be a true starting point guard, he looks like he can be an excellent asset off the bench because of his size and ability to distribute.

  • Magik_Trick

    Do we have a 2nd round pick this season? Some mock drafts say we do, some say Portland has ours….Z-Bo trade maybe?

  • http://theKnicksBlog.com Tommy Dee

    Nope Portland has ours from the D-Nick trade.

  • CircleLimit4

    On the flipside Cathalas’ height could cover a large 2 guard and offset some of the inadequacies of an undersized 2 or combo guard. We should keep this in mind should Walsh keep Nate or go after Ben Gordon/Allen Iverson.

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