D.J. Johnson – Glad to Be a Cat

Kansas City, MO – D.J. Johnson is glad he is still wearing a purple uniform.  The Parkway North graduate is playing serious minutes for the Kansas State Wildcats and in the NCAA Tournament. A three-sport athlete for the Vikings, he is finally able to focus on basketball and his progress is noticeable.

As his Wildcats prepared for their 2nd round game with La Salle, he was kind enough to spend a few minutes with me. We discussed the recruiting process (he was Coach Bruce Weber’s first signed recruit at Manhattan), the transition to Big 12 basketball and even about his high school football coach Bob Bunton.

Weber and assistant coaches Chris Lowery and Brad Korn had recruited D.J. at their previous schools stayed after the 6’8″ power forward when they reunited at K-State. D.J. says the decision wasn’t that hard and that continuing to wear a purple uniform agreed with his mother’s tastes!

Jumping from the Suburban South right into the Big 12 hasn’t been easy, but the freshman says the coaching staff has helped him make that leap.

D.J. played football, basketball and track at Parkway North and is finally able to focus exclusively on one sport and it’s helped him improve his game and add to his contributions for Coach Weber.

Being relatively close to St. Louis has allowed his family to come to some of his games, and I asked him about his high school FOOTBALL coach Bob Bunton and D.J. bragged about Coach Bunton and believes that HIS influence has helped him become a better basketball player.

D.J. is very popular on campus and on the basketball team.  In the media session, I asked Coach Weber about the recruiting process and about Johnson’s progress. This is about three minutes, but you’ll love hearing about one of the St. Louis area’s top basketball ambassadors.

At least for this season and this weekend, I’ve become a Wildcat fan.

Do Good