American basketball player
Christopher Keon Johnson is an American professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Long Island Nets of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Tennessee Volunteers.
Early life and high school career
Two months before beginning high school, Johnson suffered open fractures in four of his fingers, was thrown about 10 feet and lost consciousness in a fireworks accident. He underwent surgery to repair blood vessels in his hand and avoid amputation, and he underwent eight weeks of intensive physical therapy.[1][2]
Johnson played high school basketball for The Webb School in Bell Buckle, Tennessee. In his sophomore season, he averaged 25.6 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game, earning Division II-A Tennessee Mr. Basketball honors.[3] As a junior, Johnson averaged 25.3 points, 9.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game, leading his team to the Division II-A state semifinals. He repeated as Division II-A Tennessee Mr. Basketball.[4][5] Early in his senior season, Johnson suffered a season-ending meniscus injury. In four games, he averaged 30.5 points with 10.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game.[6]
Recruiting
On August 6, 2019, Johnson committed to play college basketball for Tennessee over offers from Ohio State and Virginia, among others.[7] By the end of his high school career, Johnson was rated by major recruiting services as a consensus five-star recruit and the highest ranked player in Tennessee in the 2020 class. He became the first top-ranked in-state prospect to commit to Tennessee since Robert Hubbs III in 2013.[8]
College career
On February 6, 2021, Johnson scored a career-high 27 points in an 82–71 win over Kentucky.[9] As a freshman, he averaged 11.3 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game, and was named to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Freshman Team. On April 7, 2021, Johnson declared for the 2021 NBA draft, forgoing his college eligibility.[10] At the NBA Draft Combine, he recorded the highest maximum vertical leap in combine history, at 48 inches.[11]
Professional career
Los Angeles Clippers (2021–2022)
Johnson was selected with the 21st pick in the 2021 NBA draft by the New York Knicks and was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers for Quentin Grimes and draft considerations.[12] On August 6, 2021, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Clippers.[13] In his rookie year, Johnson played in only 15 games for the Clippers.[14]
Portland Trail Blazers (2022–2023)
On February 4, 2022, Johnson was traded, alongside Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, and a 2025 second-round pick, to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Norman Powell and Robert Covington.[15] Johnson made his Trail Blazers debut on February 24, recording four points and four rebounds in a 132–95 loss to the Golden State Warriors.[16] On April 1, he scored a career-high 20 points, alongside three assists, in a 130–111 loss to the San Antonio Spurs.[17] The Trail Blazers ultimately finished the season with a 27–55 record and did not qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2013.
Johnson played for the Trail Blazers during the 2022 NBA Summer League. He averaged 14.2 points per game en route to the team's second Las Vegas Summer League championship in franchise history.[18] On March 27, 2023, he tied his career high of 20 points, alongside three rebounds and six assists, in a 124–90 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.[19] Two days later, Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups announced that Johnson had suffered a broken finger during a practice and would be out indefinitely.[20]
On September 27, 2023, Johnson, alongside Grayson Allen, Jusuf Nurkić, and Nassir Little was traded to the Phoenix Suns as part of a three-team trade that sent Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks and Jrue Holiday, Toumani Camara, Deandre Ayton, and a 2029 first-round draft pick to the Portland Trail Blazers.[21] The Suns later waived him on October 23 ahead of the 2023–24 regular season roster cut deadline.[22]
Brooklyn Nets (2023–present)
On November 1, 2023, Johnson signed a two-way contract with the Brooklyn Nets.[23]
Personal life
Johnson's mother, Conswella Sparrow Johnson, was a two-time Class AAA Tennessee Miss Basketball winner in high school and played college basketball for Auburn, where she was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference selection.[24]
