The Index · Live

AJ Johnson New Orleans Pelicans · #14

Guard · 6'5", 160 lb · Fresno, CA · Age 22 · 3rd season

AJ Johnson is a guard for the New Orleans Pelicans who has played 77 games over 2 seasons, averaging 3.3 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 2025-26.

New Orleans Pelicans roster More Guards

MVP race · #433Guard rank · #270Balladex Impact · 44

⚖ Quick compare

Analysis by Beau Thoutt · Balladex

◆ Rated

New Orleans Pelicans · #14 · Guard

AJ Johnson

Season avg3.9 pts · 1.0 reb · 1.1 ast · .323 fg

Career avg4.9 pts · 1.4 reb · 1.6 ast · .347 fg

Live win probabilitySeason

No scheduled game — showing season pace. Illustrative.

Tonight's projectionmodel

3.9pts

1.0reb

1.1ast

LADDER#433 in the Balladex MVP raceIMPACTBalladex Impact 44 — Role player tierINDEXAJ Johnson · New Orleans PelicansLADDER#433 in the Balladex MVP raceIMPACTBalladex Impact 44 — Role player tierINDEXAJ Johnson · New Orleans Pelicans

Scouting report

AJ Johnson — the report card

Read his whole game at a glance, then dive into any skill. Grades from the DNA model + real production.

Guard · Role player · Impact 44

AJ Johnson is a guard for the New Orleans Pelicans who has played 77 games over 2 seasons, averaging 3.3 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 2025-

C-

Offense

C-

Defense

C-

Feel / IQ

C-

Playmaking

Below average creator

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C-

Scoring

Below average scorer

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C-

Rebounding

Below average on the glass

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C-

3PT / spacing

Below average spacing

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C-

Perimeter D

Below average on the perimeter

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C-

Paint / rim D

Below average at the rim

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C-

Clutch

Below average late

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C-

Athleticism

Below average tools

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C-

Basketball IQ

Reads the game

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Durability

Availability

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Act II

Where AJ Johnson stands

Live ladders from the Balladex models, and what he's chasing. Rankings recompute nightly from real production, accolades, and search demand.

The laddersmodel · recomputes nightly

Nikola Jokić Denver Nuggets▬

43%

Giannis Antetokounmpo Miami Heat▬

23%

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Oklahoma City Thunder▬

19%

Luka Doncic Los Angeles Lakers▬

Joel Embiid Philadelphia 76ers▬

✦ Balladex Consensus: #581 of 627 — a blend of the Impact index, current production, career résumé and live search demand. Recomputes as the data does.

Futures & chases

—MVP odds

44Impact index

20Star score

Career scoring average4.9 ppg

Seasons in the index3

Accolades on file0

Stat explorer

AJ Johnson — every number, three levels deep

Headline → metric → the raw history behind it. Real career data; tracking-only metrics labeled.

C-

Scoring

3.9 PPG

drill in ↓

C-

Playmaking

1.1 APG

drill in ↓

C-

Rebounding

1.0 RPG

drill in ↓

C-

Shooting

.156 3P%

drill in ↓

The engine

How the model sees AJ Johnson

Projection = per-minute rate × projected minutes. Rates are recency- and health-weighted, aged along a per-stat curve, and adjusted for live usage/role. No black box — every number shows its work.

Projected 2026-27 40% confidence

3.1

pts

-0.3–6.5

1.1

reb

-0.5–2.7

0.9

ast

-0.5–2.3

8.4

min

proj

health

.338

fg%

~base

.232

3p%

~base

Bands widen as confidence drops. Derived live from the real 2-season history below.

What moves the points line vs last season

Last season 3.3 → projected 3.1 PPG

Minutes / role

-0.4

Development (his trend)

+0.0

Age curve

+0.0

Live context

+0.1

Net vs last season-0.2 PPG

Everything it reads

📊

3 seasons of per-minute rates

every box line, minutes-normalized

real

⚖

Recency × games-played weight

recent, healthy seasons anchor the baseline

auto

📈

Weighted least-squares trend

his own trajectory, read season over season

+dev

🕰

Per-stat aging curves

age 22 — applied per stat

curve

🔌

Live role context

usage & role shifts fold in when the feed is present

+ctx

🏥

Durability signal

GP last 3: 29 / 25 / 23 → games & confidence

health

The real history it trains onsource: Basketball-Reference · verified

AJ Johnson career stats, season by season

Career stats by season
Season	GP	MIN	PTS	REB	AST	FG%	3P%
2024-25	29	22.0	7.6	2.0	2.6	.385	.267
2025-26 (Washington)	25	8.6	2.8	1.2	0.9	.325	.280
2025-26 (Dallas)	23	10.4	3.9	1.0	1.1	.323	.156
Career	77	14.2	4.9	1.4	1.6

Source: Basketball-Reference. Backtested against completed player-seasons in the index. The same engine powers Tonight's projection, EraLab, and the role simulator — one model, asked different questions. Illustrative.

Act III

The Lab

Every number, live and interactive. Real career data; models labeled.

Gold = MVP / Championship season · hover any bar. Real per-game data; per-36 & totals derived.

EraLab · the stat time machinenovel

Re-express a season in today's pace-and-space.

—raw PPG

→

—in 2026 pace

why

Player DNA + compssimilarity model

Closest comps

⚖ Overlay a rival →

Scoring map · clickable zonesShotChart

Team-tinted. Modeled where tracking data is absent.

Role simulatorpowered by GM engine

Change the roster around him — his projection updates live.

If a key teammate misses 20 games →

Projected line shifts to — usage , assists rise as primary initiator. Title odds . Illustrative.

Context

Are the New Orleans Pelicans built to win?

Team projection rolled up from the roster + last-season baselines — and what it means for his role.

31–51proj record

#11conf seed

-4net rtg

113.5off rtg

117.4def rtg

2%playoff odds

Roster delta · what changed

Aggressive hedge & help — Hedges hard on ball screens and rotates aggressive help from the weak side. Core trending improving. Defensive anchors: Herbert Jones, Derik Queen.

How his role moves

Projected 31–51, 11th in the West. Real team projection from the roster + last-season baselines. His usage, minutes and creation load move with roster health.

Balladex Impact

44 of 99

Role player tier.

Rarity

◆ Rated

Collectible tier.

Résumé

0 accolades

Career honors on file.

Act IV

The Ballad of AJ Johnson

Birth to now — the making of a legend, narrated and scored.

2004-12-01

The beginning

AJ Johnson is a guard for the New Orleans Pelicans.

New Orleans Pelicans

Turning pro

Drafted 23rd overall, 2024 as a Guard.

true

AJ Johnson is a guard for the New Orleans Pelicans.

Chapter

He has played 77 games over 2 seasons (2024-26), averaging 14.2 minutes a night. The season-by-season table below carries every per-game figure, each one reconciled against ESPN.

Chapter

In 2025-26 he played 48 games across 2 teams, averaging 3.3 points, 1.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 9.5 minutes.

▶

Johnson's story

The documentary, narrated

Highlights

▶ Highlights landing soon

Off the court

Measurables ESPN

Active

Height: 6' 5"
Weight: 160 lbs
Experience: 3rd Season
Draft: 23rd overall, 2024
Born: Fresno, CA
Age: 22
Jersey: #14

Beyond the game

AJ Johnson is from Fresno, CA, born 2004-12-01, listed at 6'5" and 160 lb. He has 3 seasons of NBA service. This background is assembled from league records; the colour that fills a page like this comes later, from a human.

In the news ESPN

New Orleans Pelicans vs. Dallas Mavericks: Game Highlights

The person

A guard on 14.2 career minutes a night, read from the box score rather than the eye test.

Bench depth9.5 minutes a night; situational.

Floor spacerShooting 15.6% from three.

Verified profiles & sources

ESPN

FAQ

AJ Johnson — frequently asked

The questions people ask most about AJ Johnson, answered.

What position does AJ Johnson play?

AJ Johnson is a guard for the New Orleans Pelicans.

How many NBA games has AJ Johnson played?

77 regular-season games over 2 seasons, averaging 14.2 minutes.

How many NBA seasons has AJ Johnson played?

2 seasons (2024-26).

How tall is AJ Johnson?

6'5", 160 lb

AJ Johnson career stats & accolades are real, and team projections and recent-game home/away splits are computed from real production. DNA ratings, grades, tonight's projection, ladders, live win probability and simulator outputs are Balladex model output. Not affiliated with the NBA.

AJ Johnson New Orleans Pelicans · #14

AJ Johnson — the report card

Where AJ Johnson stands

AJ Johnson — every number, three levels deep

How the model sees AJ Johnson

AJ Johnson career stats, season by season

The Lab

Are the New Orleans Pelicans built to win?

The Ballad of AJ Johnson

The beginning

Turning pro

true

Chapter

Chapter

Off the court

AJ Johnson — frequently asked

Availability & durability

More New Orleans Pelicans players

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