The NBA has figured out Keldon Johnson at the worst time for the Spurs

The San Antonio Spurs are so close to the NBA Finals, they can taste it, but their Sixth Man of the Year, Keldon Johnson, is clearly struggling.

As much as he's loved by Spurs fans, and rightfully so, his performance in the playoffs confirmed what some fans had quietly suspected. His game simply doesn't translate well to the playoffs.

Teams are fine leaving him open for threes, even though he's hit them at a solid clip, especially in the corners. Still, opponents know that he likes to go right, lower his shoulder to create space, and try to bully his way to the rim.

It doesn't take advanced scouting to figure that out; we have all seen him do that several times a game.

But with the Spurs playing all above-average defenses in the NBA playoffs, that move has been taken away, resulting in Johnson's struggles.

The NBA has officially figured out Keldon Johnson

The Spurs have needed Johnson all playoffs, but he has only managed a couple of good games and none against the Oklahoma City Thunder. They have largely taken him out of the equation.

Offense isn't his only problem. Johnson's strength allows him to guard bigger players. Nevertheless, he can struggle when having to defend out on the perimeter and has a tendency to reach in and pick up careless fouls.

That's a bad habit to have against the Thunder, who often get into the bonus early. With Johnson struggling on both ends, it leaves the Spurs in a bind.

The Spurs need Johnson, but he's no-showing against the Thunder

The problem the Spurs have is that they desperately need Johnson to show up. When he's at his best, he's bullying his way to the rim, hitting open threes, and crashing the offensive glass.

He's doing two of those things reasonably well. Even so, he is connecting on just 42.6% of his two-pointers after drilling 52.4% from two during the regular season. Coach Mitch Johnson has tried out Harrison Barnes and Carter Bryant, but neither has proven themselves enough to take Johnson's minutes.

That means the Spurs are stuck with Johnson, hoping that he figures things out. However, with just one game separating this team from elimination, they are running out of time for him to find his footing.

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