B. J. Johnson (basketball)

B. J. Johnson

Johnson with Lokomotiv Kuban in 2024
No. 5–PBC Lokomotiv Kuban
Position	Small forward
League	VTB United League
Personal information
Born	(1995-12-21) December 21, 1995 (age 29) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Listed height	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight	200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High school	Lower Merion (Ardmore, Pennsylvania)
College	Syracuse (2013–2015) La Salle (2016–2018)
NBA draft	2018: undrafted
Playing career	2018–present
Career history
2018–2019	Lakeland Magic
2019	Atlanta Hawks
2019	Sacramento Kings
2019–2020	Orlando Magic
2019–2020	→Lakeland Magic
2021	Long Island Nets
2021	Brisbane Bullets
2021–2022	Lakeland Magic
2021	Orlando Magic
2022–2023	Real Betis
2023–2024	Parma
2024–present	Lokomotiv Kuban
Career highlights and awards
All-NBA G League Second Team (2020) Second-team All-Atlantic 10 (2018)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference

Robert "B. J." Johnson Jr. (born December 21, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for Lokomotiv Kuban of the VTB United League. He played college basketball for La Salle and Syracuse.

High school career

Johnson is the son of Robert Johnson, who played basketball at La Salle University from 1986 to 1990. The younger Johnson grew up outside Philadelphia and attended Lower Merion High School, NBA Hall-of-Famer Kobe Bryant's alma mater. ^[1] He had 22 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Chester High School in the 2013 state championship. Johnson was a top-100 high school prospect. ^[2]

College career

Johnson originally committed to Syracuse out of high school. He averaged 4.1 points and 3.1 rebounds per game for the Orange as a sophomore in 2014–15. After the season, he decided to transfer to La Salle. He explained that coach John Giannini told him he would be an impact player after sitting out the requisite year. ^[1] Johnson scored 35 points in a December 2016 win over Florida Gulf Coast. ^[2] As a junior at La Salle, Johnson led the team in points (17.6 per game) and rebounds (6.3) per game. He was named to the All-Big 5 first team. After the season he declared for the 2017 NBA draft, but ultimately withdrew his name. ^[3] As a senior, Johnson was named to the All-Atlantic 10 second team. ^[4] He was also named to the All-Big 5 first team after a season in which he averaged 20.8 points per game, the most for an Explorer since Rasual Butler in 2002, as well as leading the team with 8.3 rebounds per game. ^[5] He graduated from La Salle with a degree in finance. ^[6]

Professional career

Lakeland Magic (2018–2019)

After going undrafted in the 2018 NBA draft, Johnson signed with the Charlotte Hornets for NBA Summer League competition. ^[6] On September 5, 2018, Johnson signed with the Orlando Magic. ^[7] He was waived by the Magic on October 10 but would play for their G League affiliate the Lakeland Magic. ^[8] On October 23, 2018, Johnson was included in Lakeland's training camp roster. ^[9]

Atlanta Hawks (2019)

On March 1, 2019, Johnson signed a 10-day contract with the Atlanta Hawks. ^{[10] [11]} Johnson made his NBA debut two days later, putting up 11 points on perfect 4-of-4 shooting (3-of-3 three-point shooting), 2 rebounds, and a steal during 19 minutes of action in a 123–118 win over the Chicago Bulls. ^[12] On March 12, Johnson signed a second 10-day contract. ^[13] After the expiration of his second 10-day contract, Johnson returned to the Lakeland Magic.

Sacramento Kings (2019)

On April 2, 2019, Johnson signed a rest-of-season contract with the Sacramento Kings. ^[14] On July 19, 2019, Johnson was waived by the Kings. ^[15]

Orlando Magic (2019–2020)

Johnson in 2019

On September 27, 2019, Johnson re-signed with the Orlando Magic for training camp; ^[16] however, he was waived on October 19. ^[17] On November 4, the Magic signed him to a two-way contract. ^[18] On January 4, 2020, Johnson, playing for Orlando's G League affiliate Lakeland Magic, tallied 35 points, eight rebounds and two assists in the G League against the Canton Charge. ^[19] He averaged 22.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game for Lakeland. Johnson was named to the All-NBA G League Second Team. ^[20]

Long Island Nets (2021)

On December 4, 2020, Johnson signed with the Miami Heat. ^[21] On December 19, 2020, Johnson was waived by the Heat. ^[22] He was added to the Long Island Nets roster and made his debut on February 10, 2021. In 14 games, he averaged 18.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 steals in 31.1 minutes per game. ^[23]

Brisbane Bullets (2021)

On April 19, 2021, Johnson signed with the Brisbane Bullets of the Australian National Basketball League for the remainder of the 2020–21 season. ^[24] In 11 games, he averaged 10.0 points and 3.7 rebounds in 21.5 minutes per game. ^[23]

Second stint with Lakeland / Orlando Magic (2021–2022)

On October 15, 2021, Johnson signed with the Orlando Magic, ^[25] but was waived the next day. ^[26] On October 28, he re-signed with the Lakeland Magic as an affiliate player ^[27] where he played 10 games and averaged 24.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.0 steals in 34.5 minutes per game. ^[23]

On December 17, 2021, Johnson signed a 10-day contract with the Orlando Magic. ^[23] and on January 4, 2022, he was reacquired and activated by Lakeland. ^[28]

Real Betis (2022–present)

On April 6, 2022, Johnson signed with Coosur Real Betis of the Spanish Liga ACB. ^[29]

Career statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

NBA

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2018–19	Atlanta	6	0	7.2	.500	.500	1.000	1.3	.0	.3	.0	3.5
2018–19	Sacramento	1	0	6.0	.500	.000	—	.0	.0	.0	.0	2.0
2019–20	Orlando	10	0	8.3	.281	.333	.900	1.5	.3	.3	.0	3.0
2021–22	Orlando	4	0	16.3	.440	.400	—	3.8	.0	.0	.3	6.5
Career		21	0	9.4	.387	.385	.917	1.8	.1	.2	.0	3.8

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2020	Orlando	1	0	4.0	.500	1.000	–	2.0	.0	.0	.0	3.0

College

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2013–14	Syracuse	10	0	5.5	.250	.125	—	.9	.2	.1	.3	1.4
2014–15	Syracuse	25	4	14.6	.307	.262	.720	3.2	.5	.6	.2	4.2
2016–17	La Salle	29	28	32.6	.449	.362	.838	6.3	1.0	1.1	.5	17.6
2017–18	La Salle	27	27	35.2	.446	.359	.869	8.3	.7	1.3	.7	20.8
Career		91	59	25.5	.426	.335	.843	5.5	.7	.9	0.5	13.1

References

1. Waters, Mike (March 23, 2015). "B.J. Johnson's father details the reasons behind transferring from Syracuse to La Salle". The Post-Standard . Retrieved July 10, 2018.
2. Zeitlin, Dave (December 25, 2016). "After returning home, B.J. Johnson creating his own legacy at La Salle". NBC Sports . Retrieved July 10, 2018.
3. "La Salle's B.J. Johnson will return for senior season". NBC Sports . April 15, 2017. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
4. "Aldridge, Adams Named Atlantic 10 Co-Players of Year, Rhode Island's Hurley Voted as Coach of the Year" (Press release). Atlantic 10 Conference. March 6, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
5. "Johnson Claims Three Philadelphia Big 5 Awards, Including First Team Honors". La Salle Explorers . Retrieved July 10, 2018.
6. Hunt, Donald (June 25, 2018). "La Salle's B.J. Johnson to play for Charlotte Hornets in NBA Summer League". The Philadelphia Tribune . Retrieved July 10, 2018.
7. "RELEASE: Magic sign free agent guard B.J. Johnson". Magic PR on Twitter. September 5, 2018. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
8. "Magic's B.J. Johnson: Waived, will play in G-League". CBS Sports . October 10, 2018. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
9. "LAKELAND MAGIC FINALIZE TRAINING CAMP ROSTER". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. October 23, 2018. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
10. Bell, N. (March 1, 2019). "Hawks Sign B.J. Johnson to 10-Day Contract". NBA.com. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
11. Johnson, Parker (March 1, 2019). "Johnson ready to make the most of 10-day deal with Hawks". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
12. "Hawks vs. Bulls - Box Score - March 3, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com.
13. "Hawks' B.J. Johnson: Getting second 10-day contract". CBS Sports. March 12, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
14. Adams, Luke (April 2, 2019). "Kings Sign B.J. Johnson". HoopsRumors.com. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
15. Whedbee, Alexander (July 19, 2019). "Kings Waive BJ Johnson". NBA.com. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
16. "PRESS RELEASE: Orlando Magic sign free agent B.J. Johnson". Orlando Magic PR on Twitter. September 27, 2019. Retrieved September 29, 2019.
17. "PRESS RELEASE: Magic waive five players". Orlando Magic PR on Twitter. October 19, 2019. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
18. Cohen, Josh (November 4, 2019). "Magic Sign B.J. Johnson to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
19. "Magic's B.J. Johnson: Pops off for 35". CBS Sports . January 4, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
20. "Johnson, Magette and Law Named to All-NBA G League Teams". Our Sports Central. June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 28, 2020.
21. "BJ Johnson Signs With HEAT". NBA.com. December 4, 2020. Retrieved December 7, 2020.
22. Winderman, Ira (December 19, 2020). "Max Strus earns final Heat roster spot, on two-way deal; guard BJ Johnson waived". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
23. Cohen, Josh (December 17, 2021). "Orlando Magic Sign Ford, Gravett, Johnson and Schofield to 10-Day Contracts". NBA.com. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
24. "Bullets Sign Import BJ Johnson". NBL.com.au. April 19, 2021. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
25. Brumbelow, Brooke (October 15, 2021). "Orlando Magic Sign B.J. Johnson". NBA.com. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
26. Brumbelow, Brooke (October 16, 2021). "Orlando Magic Waive Four Players". NBA.com. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
27. "Lakeland Magic 2021-22 Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. October 28, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
28. "2021-22 NBA G League transactions". NBA.com. January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
29. "BJ Johnson, nuevo jugador del Coosur Real Betis". RealBetisBalompie.es (in Spanish). April 6, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.

External links

• Career statistics from NBA.com  and  Basketball Reference
• La Salle Explorers bio