Terone Johnson is almost a complete player; especially on the offensive end of the court. Johnson's talents were recently on display in southern Indiana. Having heard plenty about the promising youngster, but never actually seeing him play; I was anxious to see this kid's skill set with my own eyes.
From the opening tip it was evident that there is something special about this young man. Johnson scored at least 25 points and knocked down multiple three point shots, that looked fluid and mechanically sound. After the barrage of threes the defense (Jordan Hulls) got smart and crowded up on Johnson when he received the ball. Johnson then demonstrated why he is clearly a cut above the average athlete by; putting the ball on the deck and using his above par strength and quickness to blow by his man, on multiple possessions in a row.
Johnson's wide array of skills afford him the luxury of being plugged in at either guard position. Personally, I liked watching this kid play off the ball. Johnson can score in so many ways, he looked comfortable cutting to the basket without the ball and receiving the dump pass for a couple of easy buckets. Johnson was very effective when the lead guard or wing player would drive into the lane, draw the double team, kicking the ball out to him, at the top of the arc for an open three. He can just hurt you in so many ways. Johnson didn't shoot many mid range shots but his stroke is pure, which suggests an all around consistent jump shot.
Defensively Johnson lacked consistency but showed flashes of promise. Overall this kid is going to be a major contributor while at Purdue and coach Painter and the staff have to be glad that this Johnson will be with them, and not against them. We was able to catch up with Johnson for a little Q&A and should have that up in the coming days.
