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Butler Basketball: Bulldogs roster outlook after losing Scooby Johnson

By Drew Schmelzer

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JANUARY 04: Aaron Thompson #2 of the Butler Bulldogs listens to head coach LaVall Jordan during a game against the Creighton Bluejays at Hinkle Fieldhouse on January 4, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Butler defeated Creighton 71-57. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JANUARY 04: Aaron Thompson #2 of the Butler Bulldogs listens to head coach LaVall Jordan during a game against the Creighton Bluejays at Hinkle Fieldhouse on January 4, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Butler defeated Creighton 71-57. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JANUARY 24: A detail view of the Butler Bulldogs logo (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – JANUARY 24: A detail view of the Butler Bulldogs logo (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

What’s the likely solution if the Bulldogs go big?

Christian David, SR (2.6 Pts, 1.8 Reb, 0.6 Ast)- The 6’6 senior to be was just beginning to find his place in Butler’s rotation when he went down with his own ACL tear in the early stages of Big East play a season ago. This option fits the Butler mold as David is better known as a team-first – glue guy and is a natural fit for Butler’s slow style of play. It’s not an exciting option, but it wouldn’t surprise anybody, and David would do just fine.

Another option would be incoming sophomore and 6’7 Markeese Hastings (1.0 Pts, 1.1 Reb, 0.0 Ast). He’s a promising athlete with the size to play the 3-spot in the Big East, but there is really no way to know what you are going to get from him as he only saw action in seven games during last season’s 22-win campaign. I like Hastings, but this one’s not likely.

What if Butler goes small?

This is where it starts to get fun. Adding another guard to the starting five would allow Butler to play a little bit differently than they are accustomed to. The Bulldogs ranked 343rd in possessions per game playing one of the slower paces in college basketball and here is an opportunity to get smaller, faster, and maybe sneak up on the Big East a little. With the experience of Thompson at the point, the ball is in good hands for a slightly more run and gun (this is in Butler terms not Houston Rockets) type of offense.

Chuck Harris, FR – The freshman has a few things in common with Thompson, the man he is expected to replace as the starting point guard in a year. First off, they are both Washington DC area point guards who are proven winners at the high school level.

Secondly, they are both outstanding ball handlers and I cannot remember the last time Butler had multiple highly capable handlers on the floor at the same time and it showed in 2019-20. Butler finished in the middle of the pack in the Big East in turnovers, a stat they usually are near the top of the conference in.

The main difference is that Harris is a much better scorer and more importantly, shooter. That is not where Thompson excels. The Harris option really gives the offense a boost versus starting Christian David’s 38% field goal percentage and 27% 3-point percentage as well.

What should Butler do to replace Johnson?

A smaller lineup where the Bulldogs push the ball a little more makes a lot of sense for a few reasons.

1. Butler got very stagnant last season and had trouble scoring for long periods of time against set defenses. Luckily, they were able to stay in the top 25 for most of last season because Kamar Baldwin and Sean McDermott were able to bail them out with incredible shot-making so often. Guys like that do not exist on the 2020-21 roster.

2. Since Butler has been in the Big East, they have struggled with pressure defense. The typical Butler narrative is that the “Butler Way” embodies defense and taking care of the basketball. While Butler doesn’t turn it over a lot in the half-court, one of the reasons they’ve built a reputation for not being able to put games away is that they oftentimes struggle with aggressive defenses approaches and the full-court press. Another elite ball-handler on the floor would certainly help there.

3. Finally, Butler just needs offense more than defense and I don’t see any frontcourt option whether it’s David, Hastings, or even the 6’7 freshman JaKobe Coles who can help them offensively. They surrendered the 12th least amount of points in college basketball in 2019-20 and that is because team defense is ingrained within the culture. They’ve also got their two best defensive players back in Thompson and Nze.