BIO: AJ Johnson was born in Fresno, California (USA) and attended Southern California Academy of Sciences.

A quick and shifty combo guard with a long, wiry frame. He is a strong shot creator with effortless bounce, who drew comparisons to NBA players Jalen Green and LaMelo Ball during high school.

NBL EXPERIENCE

AJ Johnson made his NBL debut with the Illawarra Hawks at 18 years of age. He went scoreless in his first NBL game.

Following the worst season in club history, Illawarra entered Jacob Jackomas’ second year as head coach looking to recover from a 3-25 campaign. Tim Coenraad and Kevin White retired, while Akoldah Gak (to Cairns), Mangok Mathiang (to New Zealand), Alex Mudronja (to Cairns), Michael Frazier II, Peyton Siva, Lachlan Dent and Deng Deng departed. Captain Sam Froling, Tyler Harvey, Justin Robinson, Wani Swaka Lo Buluk, William Hickey, Daniel Grida and Harry Morris returned, while Jackomas added Todd Blanchfield (via Perth), Mason Peatling (via Melbourne), Biwali Bayles (via Sydney), Lachlan Olbrich (via UC Riverside), Hyunjung Lee (via Santa Cruz) and Gary Clark (via Mexico City).

Johnson decommitted from Texas and joined Illawarra from Southern California Academy on a two-year deal through the NBL’s Next Stars Program. At the time of signing, ESPN projected him to be selected with the 13th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, continuing the Hawks’ history of developing NBA prospects through the program. His preseason preparation was interrupted by a broken nose suffered during training in August, requiring surgery before he returned wearing a protective mask at the NBL Blitz.

𝐇𝐄'𝐒 𝐆𝐎𝐓 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 😤

The @illawarrahawks have added projected 2024 NBA lottery pick AJ Johnson as a Next Star for #NBL24 🦅 pic.twitter.com/0NOopIoqB2— NBL (@NBL) April 13, 2023

Johnson (0 points in 0:16 minutes) received his first NBL minutes against South East Melbourne at the WIN Entertainment Centre on October 7 as Illawarra defeated the Phoenix 113-106 behind Robinson (26 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block) and Harvey (20 points), while Will Cummings (28 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 steals) led South East Melbourne.

Johnson (2.8 points across 26 games) came off the bench in every appearance, with his opportunities fluctuating as he adjusted to the physicality of professional basketball. Illawarra held a 2-7 record when the club parted ways with Jackomas in November and promoted assistant Justin Tatum as interim head coach. Grida (5.2 points across 10 games) was sidelined by a knee injury, Hickey (5.2 points across 25 games) moved into a larger role and Kyle Adnam (1 point across 3 games) joined as an injury replacement. Johnson received increased trust under Tatum and said, “He’s hard on me, but he means well and I can tell he wants me to succeed.”

Johnson’s best all-round game came against Perth at the WIN Entertainment Centre on December 8, where Johnson (8 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block) provided an athletic spark in 14:16 as Illawarra defeated the Wildcats 100-82. Froling (21 points, 6 rebounds, and 1 block) and Clark (17 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists) led the Hawks, while Jordan Usher (17 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block) was Perth’s leading scorer as Illawarra opened the game with a 38-18 first quarter and delivered one of its strongest performances of the season.

Johnson’s best scoring game came against South East Melbourne on January 5, where Johnson (11 points, 1 rebound, and 1 assist) made 4-of-6 from the field and all three of his three-point attempts in 15:13 as Illawarra recorded its biggest victory of the season, defeating the Phoenix 116-78. Froling (20 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks) and Robinson (19 points and 3 rebounds) provided the other major contributions, while Mitch Creek (24 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 steal) led South East Melbourne.

Clark (17 points and 7.8 rebounds across 33 games) and Froling (15.4 points and 7.8 rebounds across 33 games) led Illawarra throughout the season, while Harvey (15.1 points across 33 games), Robinson (12 points and 4.4 assists across 33 games), Lee (7.3 points and 3.7 rebounds across 32 games) and Swaka Lo Buluk (6 points across 32 games) completed the main rotation. Clark won the club MVP and Members’ Choice awards and was selected to the All-NBL First Team, Froling received the NBL Next Generation Award and Swaka Lo Buluk was named the Hawks’ Defensive Player of the Year. Illawarra increased its scoring from 80.8 to 91.6 points per game and finished fourth with a 14-14 record.

AJ can fly 🚀@Bucks first-round draft pick AJ Johnson made some incredible plays in NBL24 🤩

Enjoy his best plays ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/u4fykqjCqQ— NBL (@NBL) July 7, 2024

Illawarra opened the postseason against Tasmania at MyState Bank Arena, where Johnson (5 points) made two of his three field-goal attempts in 3:13 off the bench. Clark (21 points, 10 rebounds, and 1 block) and Harvey (15 points) led the Hawks, while Jack McVeigh (26 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 steals), Will Magnay (25 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals, and 4 blocks) and Jordon Crawford (20 points) carried Tasmania to a 92-76 victory.

The Hawks returned to the WIN Entertainment Centre for an elimination game against New Zealand, where Robinson (26 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals) and Froling (21 points and 9 rebounds) led Illawarra to an 88-85 win. Parker Jackson-Cartwright (19 points, 9 assists, and 2 steals) and Zylan Cheatham (14 points and 9 rebounds) were New Zealand’s best before the Hawks advanced to the semifinals, while Johnson did not take the court.

The semifinal series opened at John Cain Arena, where Froling (26 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 block), Clark (22 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 assists) and Harvey (15 points) helped Illawarra build a 16-point fourth-quarter lead. Matthew Dellavedova (30 points, 7 rebounds, 10 assists, and 4 steals), Luke Travers (24 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 blocks) and Chris Goulding (18 points) powered Melbourne’s comeback before United won game one 115-106 in overtime, while Johnson did not take the court.

Game two moved to the WIN Entertainment Centre, where Clark (31 points, 16 rebounds, and 3 assists), Harvey (23 points), Froling (19 points, 13 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Hickey (18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals) led Illawarra. Hickey scored after Clark’s missed shot as regulation expired to force overtime before the Hawks won 113-108, while Dellavedova (20 points and 8 assists), Jo Lual-Acuil Jr (18 points and 7 rebounds) and Ian Clark (17 points) led Melbourne. Johnson did not take the court.

Game three returned to John Cain Arena, where Froling (23 points and 4 rebounds), Robinson (19 points, 3 rebounds, and 7 assists) and Clark (14 points and 6 rebounds) led Illawarra, while Shea Ili (22 points), Travers (15 points and 11 rebounds) and Goulding (14 points) carried Melbourne to a 100-94 victory and ended the Hawks’ season one game short of the Grand Final. Johnson did not take the court in the loss.

After the season, Johnson’s performances at the NBA Draft Combine and during team workouts restored his first-round draft stocks, with Milwaukee selecting him with the 23rd overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.

After the season, Johnson’s performances at the NBA Draft Combine and during team workouts restored his first-round draft stocks, with Milwaukee selecting him with the 23rd overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.

AJ Johnson played one season in the NBL. He averaged 2.8 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 26 NBL games.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Where will the high-flying Hawk land? 🦅

AJ Johnson is predicted by many to be selected in the first round of next week’s @NBA Draft 👀

Check out his official mixtape 📼 pic.twitter.com/5UhCqqKfDX

— NBL (@NBL) June 17, 2024