Houston Rockets veteran Joe Johnson is a valuable addition because he can back down defenders on post-up plays and create his own shot.
The 36-year-old can still bust out a nice move on an isolation play from time to time, like what he did against Minnesota Taj Gibson.
Among those with as many opportunities, Houston’s Chris Paul and James Harden have been the two most efficient players in an isolation offense this season.
When the team signed Johnson, many likely expected Johnson (nicknamed “Iso Joe” for his long career on this play type) to add to this type of offense for the Rockets.
He was still solid on isolation plays during the 2015-16 season but he was much worse on this play type last year but this is no longer his bread and butter.
The veteran was used more often as a spot-up shooter (31.2 percent frequency) and on post-up plays (18 percent frequency) far more often than iso’s (14.3 percent frequency) with Utah per Synergy Sports.
Johnson averaged 0.79 points per possession in a one-on-one offense before joining the Rockets. He was shooting 5-for-14 (35.7 percent) on the right side of the court on isolation plays.
Now with the Rockets, expect him to play one-on-one against defenders even less often. Instead, he has been remarkably efficient (1.29 PPP) when taking dribble jumpers on spot-up possessions, shooting 65.4 percent per Synergy Sports.
The Rockets have the second-most efficient offense (1.04 PPP) on spot-ups in the Western Conference. It’s actually their most frequent play type used so far this season.
His effective field goal percentage on catch-and-shoot plays (61.5%) ranked Top 10 among those with as many attempts last year. This is likely why the front office wanted him in Houston – not for his reputation on isolations.
