The Whiteboard: This is the Cam Johnson we expected

Sometimes, the idea of a player is more exciting than the real version. That was Cam Johnson for last year's Brooklyn Nets. After being acquired in the Kevin Durant blockbuster in 2022-23, the former Suns sharpshooter appeared on track for a bigger role in the Nets offense. But in his first full season with Brooklyn, Johnson's offensive role remained essentially the same as it was in Phoenix.

That wasn't bad — Johnson shot the ball well (39.1 percent from deep) and occasionally got hot with big games, but he was closer to a role player than an essential part of the Nets offense. Again, not bad... just a little underwhelming.

Through 21 games in 2024-25, though, Johnson is playing like the explosive scorer Nets fans thought they were getting all along. He's been a reliable source of offense, already recording as many 20-plus games as he did all of last season.

Johnson is averaging a career-high 18.1 points per game, shooting more than ever before, posting a career-best 65.6 true shooting rate, 42.2 percent from 3-point, a career-best 90 percent from the free throw line. His assists are up, his turnovers are down, and the "dud" games where he fades into the background of Brooklyn's offense are less common.

Cam Thomas has been the offensive engine for Brooklyn this season, but Johnson has been just as vital in helping Brooklyn's offense jump above the median. The Nets are No. 14 in offensive rating, up from No. 23 last season. That's a sizable leap — and Johnson's expanded offensive role has assisted that rise.

Trading Cam Johnson isn't a necessity for Brooklyn

When the Brooklyn Nets traded Mikal Bridges this summer, Cam Johnson was left as the biggest prize remaining from the Kevin Durant trade that Brooklyn made in 2023. Of course, the franchise has an arsenal of future first-round picks at its disposal thanks to both trades, but those future selections remain, at the moment, hypotheticals. Cam Johnson is a real guy.

And with the Brooklyn Nets likely being stuck just below the imaginary threshold of "competitive," trade rumors will fly for this franchise in coming months. Cam Johnson's name is going to come up in most of those rumors, but with Johnson's career-best season and clear desire to stay in Brooklyn through a (hopefully quick) rebuild ... is there really more incentive to trade him than keep him?

Brooklyn is already loaded up with draft picks, including three in the first round of a stunningly loaded 2025 NBA Draft. What is one more first-round pick going to provide this team? At some point, you can have too many picks. Don't tell Sam Presti I said that.

Instead of trading Johnson for a future pick, why not instead keep Johnson, draft a young core with the picks you already have, and surround those young players with a real roster to start their NBA careers? I see a much greater benefit in having both young talent and established NBA players on a roster than I do in rolling out a lineup solely of inexperienced players. Johnson has two years left on his contract after this season, so there's no rush in recouping value for him, either.

Going all in on draft picks and rookies and throwing veterans to the wind is how you end up like Detroit the past two years. Did you watch Detroit the past two years? It wasn't pretty.

Plus, Johnson wants to stay in Brooklyn. He's sold on what new coach Jordi Fernandez is selling, telling Hoops Hype:

"I want to build this. I really like coach Jordi. I like our staff. I think we’re headed in the right direction... I’m invested in what we have. It’s been exciting to find progress and to see the potential. I want to be here and get this thing really turned around and back to winning basketball."

The Brooklyn Nets are set up beautifully to rebuild this roster in the next few years. But trading a veteran having a career year for the chance at picking up a late-first round rookie — when the roster will already be chock full of rookies very soon — doesn't need to be part of the equation.

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NBA news roundup

• LeBron James has plenty of NBA records. He's getting closer to another one... it's just not one he actually wants — LeBron has missed 19 straight 3-pointers.

• I won't believe in the Hawks ... Okay, I might. Atlanta has won four straight games and Trae Young is averaging an outrageous 12.2 assists per game this season.

• Happy trails, Paul Milsap! The 4-time NBA All-Star announced his retirement from basketball on Tuesday. Don't forget ... this guy was a problem.

Giannis Antetokounmpo ... still very good

I'm not breaking any news here by saying Giannis Antetokounmpo is still dominating the NBA, but we should really take a peek at just how dominant he's been this season. He's scoring a career-best (and league-high) 32.9 points per game this season. He's played 17 games and scored 40-plus three times already. He's shooting 60.9 percent from the field, which would be second-highest of his career, behind only last year. He's getting better! A 2-time MVP is getting better!

He's decided to completely neglect 3-point shots (yay!) and is instead just bullying people down low, but has also expanded his midrange game considerably.

Plus, this is all happening while the Milwaukee Bucks are sizzling. Winners of 8 of their last 9 games, the Bucks have shot up to No. 5 in the Eastern Conference, once again playing like a team with a perennial All-NBA player and one of the best scoring guards of this generation. Milwaukee is No. 8 in net rating over the past 10 games, landing in the top 10 on both sides of the ball.