It’s time for Johnson to get most of UNC’s minutes at four spot

By R.L. Bynum

CHAPEL HILL — Before Pete Nance transferred to Carolina, Puff Johnson would likely have been penciled in to replace Brady Manek in the starting lineup.

Coming to UNC from Northwestern for his fifth season, Nance automatically got that spot, and he’s had good games (28 points against Portland and 21 at Syracuse) and big moments, most notably his shot to send the Ohio State game into overtime.

Johnson, a junior, has struggled with a balky right knee, which led him to miss the first three games of the season and three ACC games last month.

If Johnson can stay healthy, though, he’s shown that he is a better option at the four spot than Nance in so many ways. Johnson offered plenty of little elements Saturday, scoring eight points, including two 3-pointers, pulling down three rebounds, dishing out two assists, and getting a steal in Carolina’s 91–71 victory over Clemson.

“Having him in the lineup and being able to plug him in many different ways, it’s huge,” UNC coach Hubert Davis said. “It hurts us when Puff is out of the rotation, or he’s injured. But when he’s healthy, and he’s able to play, he gives us some really good minutes.”

There was never a doubt that Johnson could produce on the big stage after scoring 11 points in 18 minutes against Kansas in the NCAA championship game.

Carolina gives up some height going with the 6–8, 200-pound Johnson over the 6–11, 230-pound Nance, but Johnson stands out between the two on many other levels.

Johnson is more athletic, shoots better from 3-point range (38.9%, compared to 26.5%) — he’s always a threat with corner 3-point attempts — and can slash to the basket. Nance averages more points per 40 minutes (13.5–10.9), but the rebounding averages per 40 minutes for both are right at 6.8.

When Leaky Black was out of the game, Johnson guarded Hunter Tyson and did his part in holding the Clemson star to a season-low three points. If Carolina is going to put several wins together, it will start on defense and Johnson provides that by creating havoc with his length.

Johnson, who played just over 18 minutes Saturday compared to nearly 19 for Nance, has more steals (15) than Nance (7) in 306 fewer minutes.

On Saturday, Nance missed all seven shots, three from 3-point range, with five rebounds. Granted, like the knee issues have slowed Johnson, Nance’s back issues probably have a lot to do with his performances of late.

Nance has averaged 8.3 points per game, shooting 32.4% from the floor and 20.8% from 3-point range, in the seven games since a strained back forced him to miss three games in January. He frequently has a heating pad around his upper body during timeouts.

Still, if both are completely healthy, Johnson is the better overall option.

In the last three games, Johnson has a better offensive rating (points produced per 100 possessions) 115.6–100, defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) 82.9–97.1 and differential between the two ratings at +32.7–+2.9.

Johnson replaced Nance with 15:05 left in the first half and UNC outscored Clemson 16–9 to flip what was a two-point deficit into a 22–17 edge. The Tar Heels never trailed again. They rode the energy that he, Jalen Washington and D’Marco Dunn provided off the bench.

“We talked amongst ourselves about how, when the bench comes in, you have to bring as much energy as possible just because they are fresh,” Johnson said. “And a lot of players on the court may be tired at that point for the other team. We are fresh when we come in, so we have to bring that amount of energy.”

Johnson may not give Carolina the ability to space the floor quite like Manek, but he can do that a lot better than Nance.

Given that Nance transferred to play one season, it’s unlikely that Coach Davis will take away his spot in the starting lineup. But, for the rest of the season, Johnson should get more playing time than Nance, perhaps substantially more.

The second-year coach says that Johnson’s ability to bring size and versatility to the court is huge.

“He can play the small forward [or the] power forward position,” Davis said. “He’s a guy that can stretch the floor; he can rebound. He’s an excellent offensive rebounder. Also, when he gets a defensive rebound, he has the ability to bring up the ball and be able to make a play.”

Even when Johnson was healthy in January, Davis only played him a combined six minutes in consecutive games at Pittsburgh and at home against Wake Forest.

Those days should be over after Johnson’s performance in the big home win Saturday over the Tigers.

“We’ve got to build off of this, and this has got to be a stepping block for our next [game],” Johnson said after the victory. “And we just have to get ready for our next game on Monday.”

Against Miami, Johnson should get significant minutes so that he can keep his momentum going.

Photo via @UNC_Basketball

2 Comments

    1. I agree! Nance is a serviceable player but is nothing like the quotes from Davis when recruiting nance from the portal. There is a reason he is not in the NBA and we can see why!

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