Keldon Johnson must turn around this concerning trend or risk losing 6MOY

Keldon Johnson has been extremely valuable for San Antonio this season. His 13 PPG and 5.6 RPG thrust him into the Sixth Man Of The Year conversation for the first time in his career, and he's been leading a Spurs bench that's ranking top ten in the NBA in scoring.

But this does not mean that his production has been flawless. While he's been unstoppable as a downhill driver, he's struggled to find rhythm with his jump shot as of late, draining an abysmal 28.9% of his threes through his last 15 games.

A development San Antonio needs to pay attention to

Now, to say that the Spurs have been a great team as of late would be a massive understatement. They've won 12 of their last 13 games, and despite injury issues, this group has maintained its spot as a top-three seed in the Western Conference for the vast majority of the season.

But Keldon Johnson's struggles with his jump shot are a microcosm of a larger issue for the entire team in that area. Through these last 15 games, San Antonio is only making 36.4% of their looks from downtown, which puts them at the 13th spot in that category throughout this stretch.

Of course, KJ's shooting slump is not the sole reason behind the Spurs' issues. But when one of your top complementary pieces can't hit shots when sharing the court with guards like De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle, it cuts out a chunk of your offense. That could not have been more apparent than in last Sunday's loss to the Knicks, where San Antonio went just 9/34 from range.

They need him to step up

A massive part of what makes this Spurs offense tick is their barrage of guards who can beat defenders off the bounce and get to the paint. This either opens up opportunities around the rim or penetrates and kicks scenarios. A lot of Johnson's value is tied to how well he can play off of this sort of action.

It's a necessity for KJ to hit these shots to keep San Antonio's offense intact. His ability to knock down threes at an efficient rate keeps defenses honest, and luckily, he has shown he's more than capable of that. Through the entire season, he's hitting on 37.2% of his looks, and he's been particularly great above the break.

Slumps happen; nobody can ever deny that. If the league's most elite stars and highest scorers can go through tough shooting stretches, so can a 26-year-old 6MOY candidate. But regardless, this needs tightening up if the Spurs want to stay solid through this home stretch to build momentum ahead of the postseason and if Keldon wants to take home that trophy.