2023 Five-Star guard AJ Johnson, a longtime Texas guard who signed with the Longhorns last fall as a potential one lottery pick in the 2024 NBA draft, has come off the Longhorns and signed a deal with the Longhorns Illawarra Hawks of the Australian NBL.
“The college environment is a bit more controlled and it’s about X and O things and not so much about playing around with feeling and freedom,” Johnson said. 247 sports. “I feel like I thrive in an up and down system, getting more shots and feeling the game, but you also still play with actions and things like that. I also want to start with my career and take it more seriously so I can be in the game and try to be the best player I can be.” to be him.”
Johnson, a 6-foot-5 Combo guard from California, is the No. 15 player in his class and the No. 1 player in the state, according to 247Sports. He was one of two top-15 Texas five-star finishers in the class of 2023 along with top-10 prospect Ron Holland, both of whom were two of the most star-studded 1-2 combinations of incoming freshmen in sports this coming season. The Netherlands now stands as UT’s sole commitment in its class of 2023.
Given the changing landscape of athletes to capitalize on their name, image and likeness at the college level, many top clients have shied away from playing overseas or on professional courts even with the likes of the NBL, which has a Rising Star programme, the G League Ignite and Overtime Elite continuing to operate successfully. . In fact, Johnson is the first American to join the NBL’s Next Star program since LaMelo Ball did so in 2019-20, using his development in that span to become the #3 overall pick in the 2020 draft.
The Texans’ success, or lack thereof, in developing top-notch talent may also have been a factor in Johnson’s sudden decision to pursue a career elsewhere. Five-star Dillon Mitchell, who last year was a top-five player in his class, failed quite to live up to expectations as an obvious lottery type to run, and is now predicted to be a late first baseman. Recently fellow five-star Eretrio Morris in the same class entered the transfer gate. This continues a slightly underwhelming track record for Texas after one-time 2020 five-star Greg Brown went missing and was drafted midway through the second round of 2021.