Offensively
We are going to compare 6 key stats for a balanced offensive picture and comparison.
True Shooting %
This is the simplest metric to view offensive scoring efficiency.It incorporates shooting percentage for 2 point, three point and free throws. For a look at how Jackson ranks amongst his own draft class read this
Player (college season) |
TS% |
| Josh Jackson | 56% |
| Stanley Johnson* | 55% |
| Justice Winslow* | 57% |
| Andrew Wiggins* | 56% |
So from a true shooting percentage you can see why I have selected this particular group of young players for comparison. They are all nearly identical from an offensive efficiency standpoint. Key note here, these are comparisons of college stats, not the NBA stats for the other players.
So how did TS% translate to the early NBA career? Well with NBA defenses, slashing type players tend to see a drop in efficiency.
NBA Stats |
TS% |
| Josh Jackson | TBD |
| Stanley Johnson | 45% |
| Justise Winslow | 46% |
| Andrew Wiggins | 53% |
Stats per http://www.basketball-reference.com
You can see that Johnson and Winslow saw a very significant drop of 10 percentage points in transitioning from college to the NBA. Wiggins has managed to remain fairly efficient.
Three Point Shooting
Let’s face it, we know this is the swing skill for Jackson’s fit with the Philadelphia 76ers. Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid need floor spacers who can create gravity and pull defenders out to the perimeter. The more players who we surround Ben Simmons with who can create space, the more efficiently he will run the offense and score for himself as well. Gravity is absolutely vital.
Jackson’s fans will surely tell you he shot 38% from three in his lone college season. I will not dive into video to prove why I think that his form will keep him from replicating that number in the NBA. But lets compare him to his peers and see how they shot in college.
Player |
3P% |
| Josh Jackson | 38% |
| Stanley Johnson | 37% |
| Justice Winslow | 42% |
| Andrew Wiggins | 34% |
As you can see, Justise Winslow is clearly the best perimeter shooter of this group right? Well…. The NBA has a way of exposing bad form. Lets look at how these players have shot the 3 so far from 23’8″
NBA Stats |
3P% |
| Josh Jackson | TBD |
| Stanley Johnson | 30% |
| Justise Winslow | 26% |
| Andrew Wiggins | 33% |
Yikes! What happened to Justise! I wish I could tell you that his trend line is improving from seasons 1 to 2 but in fact it was much worse in 2016-17. He shot a completely untenable 20% from three point last season after 27.6% his rookie year. College three % is not a great indicator of NBA shooting success. Form and Free Throw shooting are much better indicators in my opinion.
So how does Jackson Compare when it comes to Free Throw shooting? I’m glad you asked…
Player |
FT% |
| Josh Jackson | 57% |
| Stanley Johnson | 74% |
| Justice Winslow | 64% |
| Andrew Wiggins | 78% |
This highlights why Justise Winslows college 3p% was misleading in my view. You can see here that Winslow shot very poorly for a non Center from the free throw line in college. This was the key indicator. Jackson unfortunately was even worse than Winslow. The NBA free throw line is the one constant from college and each player has basically remained steady. Thier FT% translated into the pros fairly consistently.