Last season’s top scorer turned into a sixth man this season: a role that suited him well.

John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

Welcome to Pounding the Rock’s 2023-24 player reviews! The series will look at the 15 players who finished the season with the San Antonio Spurs on guaranteed contracts (so no two-way players because we saw so little of them this year, and no Doug McDermott). Enjoy!

Keldon Johnson

2023-24 stats: 69 games, 15.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 45.4%FG

Contract Status: 3 years, $54 million remaining

Age: 24

Coming into the 2023-24 season, there were many questions regarding who would be moved to the bench from the previous season’s starting lineup to make room for Victor Wembanyama. When addressing that same question in last year’s player review for Keldon Johnson (which was done after the lottery), I said this:

Tre Jones, should he return, would seem like a logical candidate when considering who seemingly has the lowest ceiling … but are Johnson, Devin Vassell and Jeremy Sochan ready for some kind of point-guard-by-committee role, or should one of them be ready to embrace a sixth man role? Vassell and Sochan both appear to have higher ceilings than Johnson, but it would also be hard to bench the team captain and leading scorer who has started all but three games he has played in over the last three seasons.

… but Johnson does seem like the type of player who would accept the role without complaining and would be quite the sparkplug off the bench.

In hindsight, I regret that very first point about Jones, but ironically, that’s pretty much how things played out. While it was initially Jones who came off the bench, it didn’t take long to realize that no one else was suited to take on the role of starting point guard, and there were also too many players in that group who needed the ball in their hands to be effective. In between sliding Wemby to center and eventually moving Jones back to starting point guard, Gregg Popovich swapped Johnson for Julian Champagnie in mid-December, and Johnson officially settled into the sixth man role for the remainder of the season.

It was an underrated but solid move for both units. Champagnie brought more length on defense and helped stretch the floor more for the starters, while Johnson’s unselfishness, sparkplug mentality and ability to create for himself helped boost an offensively-challenged second unit. Although his scoring numbers took a big dip from 22 points per game last season, that was largely a result of him no longer being the focal point on offense (reminder: Vassell missed over half of the 2022-23 season). Johnson’s overall efficiency still rose, and while he remains a streaky shooter form three, his form looked better (no more moon balls) while he shot 35% after a career-low 32% the year before. He accepted and embraced a different role while never losing his edge, which is exactly what the Spurs needed from him.

Looking Forward

Johnson has shown he can be a more efficient shooter in the past (he shot nearly 40% from three on over five attempts per game just two seasons ago), and he needs to find that form again. He also has plenty of room for improvement on the defensive end since he can lose his man or over-help at times, but he’s still the emotional leader and energizer bunny every team needs. He’s also on a very team-friendly contract and could be a candidate for Sixth Man of the Year next season, especially if he can help boost what should be a deeper second unit’s production.

On the flip side, being the type of player everyone needs on a team-friendly contract makes Johnson a prime trade candidate should the Spurs opt to go that route to upgrade the roster at any point in the future. “Reports” have been all over the place regarding what their intentions are this summer (ESPN’s Brian Windhorst in particular seems to change his tune from “go big” to “stay put” on a weekly basis), but if they decide to delve into the trade market for a star or high-ceiling role player, a deal would likely have to center around Johnson. The lottery results once again add even more intrigue, as the Spurs hold both the 4th and 8th picks, opening up many possibilities going forward.

That being said, I’m not someone who wants to see Keldon traded unless it’s for a deal that’s too good to pass up. He’s more valuable to the team than often given credit for and could just as easily be a part of the core nucleus going forward. That doesn’t mean the Spurs shouldn’t be willing to field offers, but their asking price for him should be high, and if any offer comes along that doesn’t present a significant upgrade, they should pass. Personally, I hope Keldon is still a Spur to start next season.

Top performance

Dec. 12 vs. Lakers: 28 points (10-14 FG, 4-4 from three), 8 assists, 5 rebounds

Final Grade: B

Up next: Tre Jones

Previous Reviews:

Sidy Cissoko

Charles Bassey

Devonte’ Graham

Dominick Barlow

Sandro Mamukelashvili

Blake Wesley

Cedi Osman

Julian Champagnie

Zach Collins

Malaki Branham

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