Markell Off The Mark

NC State point guard Markell Johnson's season has been a frustrating conundrum of good and bad, and coach Kevin Keatts is searching for an answer
Joshua S. Kelly/USAToday sports

CLEMSON, S.C. -- Markell Johnson scored 11 points on Saturday, the 10th straight game he has been in double figures. He had seven assists, matching a season average that ranks second in the ACC.

But he also had six turnovers, went 1 of 6 from 3-point range and missed all three of his free throw attempts in NC State's 81-70 loss at Clemson.

Such is the conundrum of the senior point guard's 2019-20 season.

One one hand, he's still making a significant contribution to a shorthanded Wolfpack team that needs everyone available to pull their weight -- including only the fourth triple-double in school history against The Citadel two games ago. 

At the same time, though, there's clearly something missing from his game. 

It's an inconsistency coach Kevin Keatts is still trying to figure out how to address. 

"I think I’ve just got to continue to watch film with him," Keatts said of Johnson. "I have to have him be the quarterback on the floor when things are not going well, or when things are going well and we need a basket. The basket may not have to come from him. I think at times, Markell thinks that we need to have him make the basket. I just need him to play like a senior running the show."

Johnson began the season with high expectations as a second-team preseason All-ACC selection, but immediately hit a speed bump when he suffered an ankle injury a few days before the opening game against Georgia Tech.

Although he returned for State's next game, a win against Detroit Mercy, he was still clearly hobbled while going 1 for 6 from the floor, all on 3-pointers. 

He went on to make only three of his first 23 attempts from beyond the arc and while he's had a few promising shooting performances since, his season 3-point percentage is a frosty 26.0 (19 of 73). 

For comparison, the 6-foot-1 Cleveland native has shot better than 40 percent from 3-point range in each of the past two seasons.

Even more disconcerting are his uncharacteristic ball security issues.

Johnson already had four or more turnovers in seven of the 12 games in which he's played thus far. Saturday's six miscues were a season high. His average of 3.8 turnovers are nearly two per game more than his career mark.

From the sound of things, Keatts thinks his senior point guard might be trying to do too much. 

"It’s a lot of pressure on him right now," Keatts said. "He’s the only pure point guard on the roster. He’s playing a lot of minutes."

Keatts' said his most pressing concern with Johnson right now is his performance from the free throw line, where he has converted only nine of 26 attempts over the past four games.

"We haven’t talked about it a lot," Keatts said. "I’m having him shoot free throws after practice when he’s a little bit fatigued, so it’s more game-like. He’s just missing them."

Keatts said he's confident Johnson will eventually work his way out of the slump and regain the consistency that has made him one of the ACC's best point guards over the past two seasons.

"He will be fine," the coach said. "But we’ve got to get him better." 


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