Texas Basketball: Tre Johnson is More than Just a Scorer

On Tuesday night, the Texas Longhorns took down Mississippi State in Starkville, 87-82 in overtime, after a chaotic few minutes to close the game in which Texas could not advance the ball past the Bulldogs' 2-2-1 zone. Despite team struggles outside of Johnson and wing Tramon Mark, the Longhorns managed to pull off a victory in a hostile road environment, keeping a flicker of hope alive for their tournament ambitions.

Johnson, a unanimous five-star recruit out of Link Prep but originally from Dallas, Texas, broke onto the national scene as a sophomore when playing for Lake Highlands High School in the Metroplex area. Facing one of the best Texas high school back courts of all time in Cason Wallace (Kentucky, Oklahoma City Thunder) and Rylan Griffen (Kansas), the 15-year-old put up 39 points; Wallace, who is one of the NBA"s best perimeter defenders, could not find a way to stop the elite scoring threat.

Similarly, the star of the Mississippi State game was, as it has been all year, Johnson, who scored 23 points, grabbed three rebounds, and dished four assists. He was a blistering 6-for-9 from beyond the arc, which marked one of his best shooting nights in conference play. What stood out as well about Johnson's performance was his passing – as he was double teamed throughout the contest, he managed to make some brilliant reads to find open shooters. Taking advantage of the heavy ball pressure, Johnson got teammates involved, including a beautiful skip pass in the lane to Tramon Mark for three at a crucial juncture in the game.

His electric performance is a demonstration of everything he can do at the professional level – though he won't be facing double teams in the NBA regularly (at least not early on), he is still capable of making the right reads when faced with multiple defenders. At a certain point, Texas had Johnson bring the ball up the floor, and though he's not a lead initiator, his connective passing is absolutely a major positive attribute. The other thing he's showed recently, starting with the Arkansas game last week, is a prowess for attacking the basket off the dribble.

Against the Razorbacks last Wednesday, Johnson drove the lane repeatedly off of a curl screen action, making use of his size and functional handle to get to the rim. Though they were close shots, they were anything but easy, as the Arkansas defense contested every look. If he can consistently put pressure on the rim, the sky is the limit for his overall scoring acumen, especially if he can distribute on drive-and-kick actions.

Johnson is a special player that has been receiving top-five buzz as of late. Considering the top four picks are essentially set, with Cooper Flagg (Duke), Dylan Harper (Rutgers), Ace Bailey (Rutgers), and VJ Edgecombe (Baylor), Johnson has a chance to go fifth overall. If he can continue to play this way and Texas can sneak into the tournament, he can further ensure that he goes near the top of the draft.

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