Hawks/Nets Key Matchup: DeMarre Carroll vs. Joe Johnson

Of all the matchups in this opening round series between the Hawks and the Nets, the clash on the wing has provided some of the most intriguing, even if on paper it necessarily isn’t the marquee battle.

It’s not just about DeMarre Carroll and Joe Johnson as players, but what each represents to each franchise too. They are the singular embodiment of two contrasting systems that have gotten their clubs to their respective positions thus far.

On the one hand is Johnson, the much-maligned former Hawk who’s slow-moving, concrete sets drew the ire and frustration of basketball purists and eventually the city of Atlanta. With him at the helm, Atlanta grew stagnant and eventually shipped him, and his ludicrous contract, to Brooklyn as a complementary piece to Deron Williams and Brook Lopez. He’ll make $23.1 million this year. He is Iso-Joe.

On the other hand is Carroll, a defensive dervish who is slowly morphing into a dual-threat on the offensive end with boundless energy. He is a glue guy, always bringing an extra ounce of energy in all facets of the game. He represents the up-tempo pacing and whirling ball movement of this new incarnation of Hawks, the one that completely relinquished its pro-isolation shackles in favor of winning division titles and setting franchise win records. He’ll make $2.5 million this year. He is the Junkyard Dog.

The monikers alone should tell the story. When these two go at it on Sunday, it’ll be truly differing styles going head to head. One who likes to use his size advantage and go at you head on to create his shot, and the other who prides himself on playing active defense and will out run you on transition for set shots from the corner. At first glance, their season stats are pretty similar.

Joe leads slightly in points per game and assists but DeMarre is the better rebounder, defender, and slightly better shooter. Head-to-head matchups tell a different story. In four games against each other (with Atlanta winning all four) here is the comparison.

Carroll: 17.3 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3 apg, .632 fg%, .619 3p%

Johnson: 15.8 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.5 apg, .511 fg%, .368 3p%

Carroll has played like the better player when they’ve matched up with each other. In fact, he locked down Joe in the 32 point blowout two weeks ago, limiting him to just four points on 20 percent shooting.

Between the two it’s clear that Carroll has been far and away the more efficient and well-rounded player. A reason is his versatility and place in a system that can routinely give him open looks from deep and score off of a litany of cuts and handoffs.

Per NBA Stats & Info, Atlanta finished No. 1 in catch and shoot attempts and just behind Golden State for total assists. Constant movement with and without the ball is the lifeblood of the Hawks offense and will allow Carroll to cash in on more desirable looks, leading to higher stats.

DeMarre’s percentage numbers are off the charts but you can’t discredit Joe Johnson at all from being a huge factor. He’s up there in age at 33 years old but he is also the most experienced player of both teams in playoff games. He’s known for taking over games late and possessing that sacred clutch gene.

Bringing over to Brooklyn what Hawks fans already knew, his knack for knocking down big shots hasn’t let up for the most part. He desires getting off shots late in games and late in the shot clock. This year, 10% of his shots came between 0-4 seconds left on the shot clock, placing him 11th highest in the league in those attempts.

This mentality of taking over games is definitely an advantage for Johnson and the Nets, and DeMarre should take note of it. He’ll need to close out faster and get more physical against the larger frame of Johnson to force him into either a tough shot or make the pass back out so the defense can reset.

Of course the playoffs are a different animal than the regular season but look to see both players continue to go to their bread and butter game plans come Sunday.

Ultimately it comes down to Carroll benefiting from his movement and the rest of his teammates to bait and confuse the Brooklyn defense and provide him good looks. This will be interesting to see up against Johnson, who’ll elect to slow him down and become more physical.

And if the game is close late in the fourth, watch out for a potential Joe Cool takeover to make the game more exciting and the individual matchup even more important.

Next: Hawks/Nets Key Matchup: Al Horford vs. Brook Lopez

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