Phoenix Suns: The good and the bad of rookie Josh Jackson so far

Attacking the basket: The bad

Fearless. Tough. Aggressive.

These were just some of the words used to tout Josh Jackson’s tenacious playing style on the offensive end. At Kansas, few could stop him from getting to his spots on the floor, particularly when it came to attacking the basket.

As you’d expect to see from a 20-year-old rookie entering the league with that same mentality, adjusting to the physicality of grown men with NBA experience has been a learning experience. Still though, there’s no mincing words about this being one of his defining traits.

"“Just getting to the basket, I think it’s what I’m best at,” Jackson said when asked about his career-high 18 points."

The never-back-down attitude remains, and according to NBA.com, Jackson’s 73 drives rank as the seventh-most among rookies. The six players ahead of him are all point guards receiving heavy minutes, and the next-closest player behind Jackson is Kyle Kuzma … with 46 drives.

The relentlessness is commendable, but it’s also the biggest reason so many of Jackson’s forays into the lane have ended in forced, unconventional finishes or “welcome to the NBA” moments.

It’s not just a shot-blocking machine like Kristaps Porzingis who’s showed zero mercy on the Suns rook, however.

Both Tyler Zeller and Joe Harris of the Brooklyn Nets — players not exactly known for their athleticism — both turned back Jackson’s shots at the rim in their Nov. 6 meeting in Phoenix:

These plays aren’t an indictment of Jackson’s athleticism as much as they are an indicator that he’s still adjusting to the speed of NBA help defense. He does a great job getting past his initial defender, but simply doesn’t anticipate how quickly he’ll be challenged at the rim.

Triano, like Watson before him, loves Jackson’s aggression attacking the cup.

"“We saw it the other night [against Brooklyn], I love the fact that he’s aggressive and tries to take the ball to the basket,” he said. “He’s gonna learn when he has an advantage and when he doesn’t have an advantage in those situations, but we’ve got to have other guys up there.”"

For someone who zipped past on-ball and help defenders at Kansas, Jackson’s adjustment will come with time. The problem is many times, he’s off and running before the Suns can even send anyone to give him and outlet or pull down a rebound off a miss:

Aggression is great, but this play looks more like a rookie trying to do too much too soon. The Suns aren’t particularly concerned at this stage, though. In fact, to hear Triano talk about Jackson’s tendency to challenge multiple defenders at once is almost like hearing an affectionate parent talk about their child trying to spoil the family dog with chocolate.

"“I think the one thing with him is we’re trying to not temper his aggressiveness, so when he drives into three guys and tries to shoot it…I mean, that’s aggressive,” he laughed."

On makes and misses alike, it’s apparent this is a player still learning when to go full steam and when to pump the brakes. An ugly flying runner through the lane is a predictable misfire against the Utah Jazz, but even a full-speed Euro-step that drops against Hassan Whiteside is not an ideal shot choice for Jackson at this stage:

That’s not to say Jackson is entirely reckless attacking the basket, though. He still needs to get stronger, but his aggressiveness off the bounce is an early positive. It’s just learning what to do once he blows by that first layer of the defense that needs work.

For one thing, fine-tuning his floater will go a long way until he’s strong enough to finish through (and over) contact.

Jackson is not shy about giving his floater a go when he gets in the lane, but whether it’s because he’s coming in too hot or because he just needs to refine this area of his game, for the most part, it just hasn’t been on target early on:

It’s not just the floater where Jackson could use some work. A little too often this season, he’s failed to finish gimmes right at the rim.

A rushed layup against the Blazers here, a missed and uncontested dunk against the Nets there, and the whole perception surrounding Jackson’s finishing ability in the lane could be drastically different.

Some of it just boils down to Jackson getting stronger and not letting contact throw him off balance, like this bump from Allen Crabbe does:

A look at his shot chart shows Jackson has converted only 30 of his 59 looks near the basket. That’s a lot of red, but Jackson has taken some time adjusting to the length and speed of NBA defenders when attacking the basket.

The early returns show an inexperienced youngster struggling to cope with the next level, but as we’ll cover next, there are plenty of positive signs too.