Prized Fighter: James Johnson

Nice article about JJ's background, his kick-boxing family, how he was "discovered", and the time he nearly kicked Chris Paul in the face. (Still don't know why he's a 22 yr old sophomore... anyone?)

over 2 years ago smash! 10 comments 0 recs |

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Well, kids in Wyoming don't start school until they're eight

they’re needed at the ranch don’t you see. I thought everyone knew that.

by hlac on Jun 27, 2009 11:55 PM CDT reply actions

well he was an 18 year old high school junior

so he probably spent his formative traveling the world, having adventures, like Caine in Kung Fu.

by Basketball Smurf on Jun 28, 2009 12:01 AM CDT reply actions

so he probably spent his formative years traveling the world, having adventures, like Caine in Kung Fu

fail…

by Basketball Smurf on Jun 28, 2009 12:01 AM CDT up reply actions

"basically, I'm just gonna walk the earth..."

by chitownsports25 on Jun 28, 2009 8:49 AM CDT up reply actions

I thought it was interesting when he said in a recent interview that he and Rose have known each other...

for a while now bc they both graduated high school in 2007. I thought, “what? Rose is barely 20…and you’re 22?” So yeah, clearly he was held back earlier in his academic career or something…

by smash! on Jun 28, 2009 9:10 AM CDT reply actions

He's been reported to have had academic troubles.

There was an article where his father said he was proudest of James doing the work he needed to do to get in to Wake Forest. That he changed his friends and put a lot of effort into school once he really wanted to play college basketball. It’s alittle strange that the Bulls took two players who were at least two years older than their class.

by Scotter on Jun 28, 2009 1:39 PM CDT reply actions

Yeah, I just read the Trib this morning and read the same thing about JJ...

And Taj, who sounds like a great kid, apparently was home schooled for a few years, then went to a juco and had problem with his high school grades transferring to USC.

by smash! on Jun 28, 2009 2:11 PM CDT up reply actions

That can't be true... Tim Floyd was running that program!

BullsTwo

by Sports2 on Jun 28, 2009 8:51 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

I know, I thought the same thing!

by smash! on Jun 29, 2009 8:49 AM CDT up reply actions

In the end, that makes me like him better

The biggest knocks I see so far on him are his lack of discipline and understanding of the team game, which, in its own way, is about discipline on the court.

However, the fact that he’s demonstrated the ability to make significant and difficult changes gives me hope he can figure it out. Playing smart that is. Especially in light of the facts that he’s relatively new to pro ball and Wake didn’t appear to teach it all that much anyway.

Of course, I’m not sure turning him over to Vinnie is doing him a lot of favors in that regard…

BullsTwo

by Sports2 on Jun 28, 2009 8:57 PM CDT up reply actions