Stan Van Gundy pleased with Stanley Johnson’s approach

Though it may not be pretty to watch and the numbers don’t look great on paper, Detroit Pistons head Coach Stan Van Gundy is pleased with the way Stanley Johnson has approached Summer League, electing to work on his weaknesses rather than dominating the competition.

Last year, the eighth pick in the 2015 draft Stanley Johnson declared himself the best player in the draft. He backed that up with incredible performances in his first taste of action with the Pistons in last years summer league. This year? Not so much. But for all the right reasons.

"“I think he’s doing exactly what he should be doing here in summer league” Van Gundy explained, referring to Johnson playing to his weaknesses to improve them, such as driving left rather than to his preferred right side. “I like his approach and how he’s trying to play. When he looks at film it’ll just be another learning experience and a chance for him to move forward”."

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Great things to hear from your coach, especially following a 5-for-17 shooting performance with two of those shots (both three-pointers) coming inside the final two minutes of the game. The 6-foot-7 small forward has been working on his shooting over the summer.

It may not translate into buckets just yet but there is noticeable improvement in his shooting form and Johnson can see the benefits in the long run; “I find calmness in that I know in a couple of months I’ll be a lot better at what I’m doing”.

While the new No. 7 of the Pistons has been struggling with changes on the offensive end, there’s still the other half of his game that has been in full effect during summer league. If Johnson can continue to play at a high level on defense, chances are he’ll still get playing time regardless of if his newly reformed shot has come along the way he expects it to.

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Johnson will have the remainder of summer league, as well as a stint with the USA select team to continue to fine tune these weaknesses. My bet is that when the end of October rolls around, these weaknesses may in fact be new strengths.