Billionaires

Why Cam Johnson’s Playmaking Will Boost The Denver Nuggets’ Offense [Film Study]


2025 has seen the heaviest shuffling of the Denver Nuggets roster of any offseason in the Nikola Jokic era, with seven players from last year’s team going out, and another seven added. And in that array of moves, trading Michael Porter Jr. and a 2032 first round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Cameron Johnson was the biggest swing made this summer by Denver’s newly helmed front office.

While the salary savings the Nuggets achieved by sending out Porter’s $38.3 million maximum contract for Johnson’s at $20.5 million created the flexibility to acquire additional rotation players in Jonas Valanciunas, Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr., the move was largely seen as lateral in terms of Johnson and Porter having highly overlapping skill sets.

But to what extent is that actually the case, and what differences might Johnson bring to Denver in MPJ’s place?

Like Porter, Cam Johnson built his reputation in the NBA as a floor-spacing forward with a smooth and efficient three-point shot. But beyond his shooting numbers lies another skill which, though less prolific, positively impacts games: his passing.

Johnson isn’t a heliocentric creator who warps defenses with the ball in his hands – like Porter, he tends to be more of a play finisher – but in fact he is a competent, decisive and smart playmaker who thrives in a flowing offensive style.

The Nuggets’ offense is primarily built around three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and his two-man game with Jamal Murray, with player movement around those actions fueling the pressure they put on opposing defenses. Johnson’s vigorous off-ball movement and ability to put the ball on the floor to come off screens and attack close-outs for drive-and-kick assists to perimeter shooters, as well as to keep defenses rotating and connect offensive actions, looks to be a seamless fit with his new squad.

While Johnson’s assist numbers at a glance may not jump out of the box score, a deeper statistical look at his passing compared with Porter’s offers some promising indicators for Denver.

Neither of the two traded players is known primarily (or even secondarily) for his prolific assist-making. Johnson’s 3.4 assists per game last season slightly beat out Porter’s 2.1, but both at a glance are unexceptional.

That said, the wider, and more interesting gap between the two can be seen in potential assists, defined at NBA Stats as any pass to a teammate who shoots within one dribble of receiving the ball, and assist points created, meaning points created by a player or team through their assists. In other words, how many assists would that player have gotten had all his passes connected for made shots, and how many points were generated off his assists?

Here we see greater differentials in Johnson’s favor. His 6.4 potential assists to MPJ’s 3.2 (3.2 more, compared with 1.3 more assists per game) are indicative of his being more actively engaged in greater playmaking efforts, but that those didn’t pay off as well.

In short, Johnson’s teammates missed more shots, which makes sense considering the wide gap in shooting efficiency between the Nuggets, who had the NBA’s second-highest effective field goal percentage at 57.9%, and the Nets, who were 26th at 52.0%, per Cleaning the Glass, which excludes heaves and garbage time for greater accuracy.

Cam Johnson is joining a Nuggets starting lineup which last season saw Jokic shoot 45% on three-pointers, Aaron Gordon 44%, and both Murray and Christian Braun 40%, all well above league average at their positions. It stands to reason that once his passes are finding shooters who consistently hit at a higher clip, more of those potential assists should translate into actual assists.

This also leads into Johnson’s 3.7 assist points created advantage over Porter. In addition to the team shooting efficiency disparity between the Nets and Nuggets, tracking data on passing from Second Spectrum shows that 42.4% of all Johnson’s passes that resulted in field goal attempts were on three-point attempts (as will be readily apparent in the film below). On the other hand, just 26.7% of Porter’s passes on FGAs went to three-point shooters, or 15.7% fewer. This helps account for why Johnson got more bang for his buck on his assist attempts that did connect for makes.

All of which is to say, Johnson making “only” 1.3 assists per game than MPJ disguises the fact that he’s a significantly more effective and dynamic playmaker, and should prove to be even more so after integrating into the mix with one of the NBA’s most elite offenses.

Film Study: Cam Johnson’s Playmaking

This film study examines several aspects of Cam Johnson’s passing repertoire. Breaking down his assists into five key categories will help demonstrate how the different ways Johnson creates scoring opportunities align perfectly with the Nuggets’ movement-heavy, read-and-react system, and particularly alongside Nikola Jokic’s orchestration of the offense.

Drive-And-Kick Assists to Three-Point Shooters

One of the simplest but most effective parts of Johnson’s playmaking occurs when he puts the ball on the floor, draws in help defenders, and fires the ball out to open shooters. Johnson has enough straight-line quickness to punish aggressive closeouts, and once he forces the first rotation, he consistently makes the right read.

In the clips above, you’ll notice how he doesn’t overcomplicate these plays: a quick two-dribble attack, a collapsed defender, and then a kickout right into the shooting pocket. That decisiveness makes a difference, as all too often role players hesitate once they get downhill, giving defenses time to recover. Johnson, by contrast, processes quickly and delivers clean looks for his teammates.

Also evident in the film is how much more advanced his ball handling skills are than Porter’s, a trait which both helps him to effectively attack closeouts, and also forces defenses to react more honestly once he gets past his man. The first bullet point in his player profile might be “three-point shooter,” but his gravity is not limited to the perimeter.

In Denver, this skill set becomes particularly valuable given his fellow starters’ shooting prowess. When the defense helps off the corners, Johnson will often be able to find Gordon or Braun for open looks there, or if the defense rotates up to cover those shooters, that should open up slot cuts for Jokic or Murray. Johnson’s ability to keep the flow moving ensures that the Nuggets’ offense – already one of the league’s most efficient and difficult to guard – stays a step ahead of scrambling defenses.

Drive-And-Kick Assists Coming Off Curls

A key distinction in Johnson’s playmaking comes when he curls coming off screens or dribble handoffs (DHOs). In these cases, rather than simply attacking the closeout, Johnson uses his momentum off the screen to get downhill, putting immediate pressure on the defense. That initial edge forces help to collapse into the paint, and Johnson leverages it by kicking the ball out to perimeter shooters.

The clips above demonstrate how naturally Johnson operates in these situations: flowing around a handoff, dribbling into the lane, and then dishing the ball to an open teammate at the arc. What makes these plays stand out is the combination of off-ball movement and on-ball decision-making. Johnson’s shooting gravity as he curls into space causes defenders to commit, and once they do, he has both the vision and aptitude to punish over-help with kickouts. Nuggets fans and observers who have watched Porter play in Denver for years should quickly get a strong visual and visceral sense of just how much more dynamic of a passer Johnson is off movement and off the dribble.

This interplay of Johnson’s curling and the Denver’s already motion-heavy offense looks to be a perfect fit, especially in how the Nuggets have long weaponized Jokic’s DHOs as a staple action of their offense. Insert Johnson into those sets, and he should get plenty of opportunities to curl off Jokic’s screens in DHOs, put the defense in rotation, and then find open, competent shooters. The Nuggets thrive on forcing defenders into impossible choices, and Johnson’s ability to drive-and-kick off curling actions adds yet another layer of stress to opponents.

Interior Assists

In addition to drive-and-kick dishes, Johnson’s willingness to make the extra pass shows up frequently on interior feeds as well. Whether it’s a bounce passes to cutters, a dump-offs to bigs, or quick touch passes in the paint, he consistently rewards teammates who move without the ball, something they already excel at having played together for years with Jokic as the offensive fulcrum.

Denver’s cutting game – most often spearheaded by Aaron Gordon and Braun – relentlessly stresses defenses. With Jokic orchestrating at the elbow or top of the arc, cutters find seams that few (or in some cases any) other passers have the ability to exploit. And so his teammates consistently strive to make good, hard cuts to the basket.

As a secondary playmaker, Johnson should fit into this mold perfectly. His vision in tight spaces and his patience under pressure allow him to hit cutters in stride, turning defensive lapses into easy points.

In the film above, watch how Johnson draws help on a drive and then slips a pocket pass to a rolling big or drops it off to a player in the dunker spot. These are subtle plays, less awe-inspiring than Joker’s more magical dimes, but they are effective and embody the connective, free-flowing ball movement that Denver builds much of its offensive identity around.

Lob Assists

Although it may not be the centerpiece of Cam Johnson’s playmaking profile, his ability to deliver accurate lobs adds another layer to his passing, one he was able to put to good use in Brooklyn alongside a formidable alley oop finisher in teammate Nic Claxton (the recipient in most of the lobs seen in the clips above). Johnson has shown he can spot vertical threats and deliver the ball with deft touch and timing.

Importantly, this includes when he operates as the ball handler in pick-and-rolls (PnRs), a skill Porter has really not been known to possess. To that point, last season Johnson averaged 2.4 possessions per game as the PnR ball handler, a frequency of 14.5%, while MPJ had just 0.7, a 4.4% frequency. This clearly introduces a new and vital element to the Nuggets’ offense, as more will be seen of below.

For Denver, one thing Johnson’s lob prowess should create is another way to optimize the superlative athleticism and dunking ability of Aaron Gordon, with Christian Braun, Peyton Watson and DaRon Holmes also being potential targets. Gordon has thrived as a cutter and finisher alongside Jokic, but giving him in particular another lob partner only increases Denver’s unpredictability. Defenses already struggle to account for Jokic’s often confounding passing angles. If Johnson can add reliable lob feeds in secondary actions, Denver’s half-court offense will become even more dangerous.

Assists Out of Pick-and-Rolls and Dribble Handoffs

As stated above, one of the more intriguing elements of Johnson’s playmaking is his ability to operate as the ball handler in pick-and-roll and dribble handoff situations. While he’s not a primary initiator – and realistically may have the ball in his hands less alongside Jokic and Murray than he did in Brooklyn – Johnson has a solid handle and keen court vision, and can make defenses pay when he’s given the space he’ll likely have in Denver.

As seen in the clips above, Johnson is capable of making a fairly wide variety of solid reads as the ball handler in PnRs – pocket bounce passes to rollers, dump-offs when the help rotates over, and frequently looks back to the arc after penetrating, including a nifty little behind-the-back dish to three-point shooters as he dribbles in. While these aren’t high-volume actions for Johnson – and again, probably won’t be in Denver, either given the company he’ll be keeping – they’re effective, smart, and could be lethal as little daggers when his gravity draws help defenders off their assignments.

In Denver, these skills should generate greater lineup flexibility. When Murray sits, as he has traditionally done fairly early in first and third quarters in order to stagger him with the bench, Johnson can initiate second-side pick-and-rolls with Jokic, keeping the offense fluid. Instead of stagnating with a single creator off the floor, Denver can maintain its rhythm by letting Johnson handle in small bursts. And the same should hold true if he himself staggers with the second unit, which – outside of third-year point guard Jalen Pickett, who is likely also third on the PG depth chart behind returnee Bruce Brown – lacks a true natural primary ball handler.

Projection: Cam Johnson’s Playmaking Will Elevate Denver’s Offense To New Heights

Johnson’s passing skills won’t turn him into Denver’s lead ball handler, nor should that be the case. His value will lie more in his ability to blend in – to toggle smoothly between scoring and passing roles, depending on what looks defenses show him, and facilitate the flow of the Nuggets offense without being a ball stopper or causing the hiccups that arise from indecisiveness.

Aside from the fact of simply featuring the best player in the world in Nikola Jokic, Denver’s offense operates at such a high level in large part because everyone on the floor is empowered to pass. Jokic sets the tone, but Murray, Gordon and Braun all contribute connective passing to keep possessions alive through secondary and tertiary actions.

Johnson fits seamlessly into the Nuggets’ ecosystem. His passing repertoire covered above – drive-and-kicks, curls, interior feeds, lobs, and pick-and-roll reads – touches upon nearly every aspect of how Denver plays. (And as a side note, albeit a very significant one, it’s worth noting that he’s also a very adept passer in transition, though that was not covered here as the focus is on halfcourt sets.)

Cam Johnson is often described as a shooter first, but this film study makes clear that his passing deserves its due attention. His unselfish willingness to dish it out to teammates, his high basketball IQ, his ability to process quickly, make accurate reads, and connect multiple actions together will make him an ideal fit in Denver’s offensive juggernaut, and one who meshes quickly and smoothly with his new teammates.

Much more than just a one-dimensional floor spacer, Johnson will be another essential hub in a system built on trust (especially that of Jokic, who has the highest respect for the smartest players), movement, and unselfishness.

And surrounded by stars both established and rising who demand defensive attention, his underrated playmaking should quietly become one of the Nuggets’ most valuable secondary weapons.