10 young NBA players in need of a breakout season in 2018-19
1. Stanley Johnson, Detroit Pistons
Stanley Johnson, yet another highly vaunted lottery pick that hasn’t panned out from the 2015 NBA Draft, once said he’d be the best player in the draft class. Three years later, we’re still waiting for him to prove he deserves to start on a mediocre Eastern Conference team, let alone that he’s a future franchise star.
There’s been a lot of talk about Johnson being one of the league’s best defensive matchups for LeBron James, and while it’s true he can be smothering on that end, he’s been absolutely pitiful on the offensive end. He’s been a lot like Justise Winslow, the wing from his draft class he was constantly compared to … only if Winslow were downright atrocious on offense.
Last year, Johnson averaged 8.7 points and 3.7 rebounds in his 27.4 minutes per game, starting in 50 of his 69 appearances for the Detroit Pistons. Aside from the low stat line, he compiled his numbers on putrid .375/.286/.772 shooting splits.
He’s still only 22 years old and there’s hope Dwane Casey can bring out the best in him, but a new head coach isn’t suddenly going to teach him how to shoot. With new arrival Glenn Robinson III set to challenge him for minutes, Stanley Johnson needs a breakout year before restricted free agency just about as bad as anyone in the NBA. If he doesn’t make heady strides in 2018-19, a new regime in Detroit that has no ties to him won’t be inclined to keep him around.