A look at the Bulls’ 2009 NBA Draft picks..
Written by The Go-To-Man Mattie T. on June 27, 2009
1st round, 16th overall pick:
Forward James Johnson (6’8, 200) from Wake Forest University.
Johnson joins Chris Paul & Rodney Rogers as the only Demon Deacons to leave school early for the NBA Draft.
Scouting report via NBADraft.net:
Strengths: Extremely skilled and versatile forward … Great physical package, combining size, strength, athleticism and an impressive 7’1 wingspan … His frame is very nicely developed, with strong shoulders and a wide base …He has a very refined scoring touch and knows how to put the ball in the basket … Proved that he is very comfortable handling the ball in all situations, including in transition while going full speed and still keeping his head up, looking to make plays … Has shown that he excels in a point forward role, where he can use his playmaking ability to create for teammates and himself … He has advanced moves off the dribble; hesitation, crossover, spins, in& outs as well as nice ability to make a second counter move … Has a lot of confidence in his outside shot, and proved that he has range beyond the college 3 … … Operates nicely out of the triple threat, where he utilizes a good shot fake as well as long jabs that get the defender off balance … His game is extremely potent out of the mid to high post where he can face up and attack or back people down … He is very comfortable going to and finishing with both hands … Using his size and length while attacking, he is able to protect the ball and finish with extreme efficiency … He’s good at keeping his balance while attacking contact, which gives him a good chance to convert in traffic and against help defense … Has become very confident operating on the block with his back to the basket … His wide base allows him to get good position, where he can seal and receive the ball very deep … He has nice patience inside, a variety of moves and extremely good footwork which makes him a difficult match up … Can effectively turn to both shoulders … Uses a nice spin move, where he covers a lot of ground but can still keep his balance … Is very aggressive going to the glass, and likes crashing the O glass … Has improved his stats across the board in his sophomore season.
Weaknesses: Has battled inconsistency throughout his career … Does not show up to play every night and has stretches where he disappears completely, not only as a scorer but in other facets as well …. He is 2 years older than his class, taking off some potential for growth … Is a bit heavy legged which limits his 1st step … His shooting numbers have improved but he is still a very streaky and somewhat inconsistent shooter from the outside … He takes a lot of bad shots early in the shot clock and out of the offense … Settles from the outside, and does not always get to the basket … Goes for the homerun play and forces the action too often, especially in transition when he attacks even without numbers …. Needs to learn to control the tempo better, and mix the pace up … Defensively, he doesn’t move well laterally and is foul prone, but with his length and physical package he should be able to overcome … Continues to shoot a mediocre percentage from the line (69%).
NBA Comparision: Danny Granger/Ryan Gomes.
1st round, 26th overall pick:
Forward Taj Gibson (6’9, 210) from the University of Southern California.
Gibson’s 896 rebounds ranks 2nd in school history only behind leader Ron Riley. (1,067 rebounds during 1970-72).
Scouting report via NBADraft.Net:
NBA Comparision: Vin Baker.
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