Daniel Johnson (basketball)

Daniel Johnson (born 3 April 1988) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Adelaide 36ers of the National Basketball League (NBL). Standing 6'11½" (212 cm) tall, Johnson's primary position is centre, but with a strong mid and long range shooting ability, he is equally effective at playing power forward. He is a seven-time All-NBL Team member, including three All-NBL First Team recognitions. Johnson is also a long-time Australian state league player and has had many stints overseas.

Daniel Johnson
No. 21 – Adelaide 36ers
PositionCentre / Power forward
LeagueNBL
Personal information
Born (1988-04-03) 3 April 1988
Carnarvon, Western Australia
NationalityAustralian
Listed height212 cm (6 ft 11 in)
Listed weight108 kg (238 lb)
Career information
High schoolWilletton (Perth, Western Australia)
CollegePepperdine (2007–2008)
Playing career2006–present
Career history
2006–2007Australian Institute of Sport
2008–2009Melbourne Tigers (Big V)
2008–2010Melbourne Tigers (NBL)
2010Willetton Tigers
2010–2014Adelaide 36ers
2011South Adelaide Panthers
2013West Adelaide Bearcats
2014Piratas de Quebradillas
2014West Adelaide Bearcats
2014–2015Stelmet Zielona Góra
2015–presentAdelaide 36ers
2015Wellington Saints
2016Santeros de Aguada
2016Sturt Sabres
2017Petrochimi Bandar Imam
2018Forestville Eagles
2018Ferro Carril Oeste
2019Earth Friends Tokyo Z
2020SeaHorses Mikawa
Career highlights and awards

Early life and junior career

Johnson was born in Carnarvon, Western Australia,[1] and grew up in Perth, where he attended Willetton Senior High School.[2] In 2006 and 2007, he attended the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) and played for the program's SEABL team.[3] In 2006, he helped the AIS win the King Club International Cup en route to being voted the tournament's Most Valuable Player after averaging 22 points, six rebounds, one assist, two blocks and a steal over five games. He was also a member of the Australian national under-19 team that competed in Germany, Taiwan and Italy in 2006.[4] The following year, he played for the Emus at the 2007 FIBA Under-19 World Championship in Serbia.[1]

Johnson moved to the United States to play college basketball for Pepperdine University in the 2007–08 NCAA season.[4] Holding the Waves' starting centre position for most of the season,[5] Johnson averaged 9.4 points and 3.8 rebounds in 21 games.[6]

Professional career

NBL

Johnson returned to Australia in 2008 and played two seasons with the Melbourne Tigers in the NBL.[7] In his rookie season, the Tigers made it to the grand final series, where they lost in five games to the South Dragons.

Johnson played his first season with the Adelaide 36ers in 2010–11.[7] In his second season with Adelaide, Johnson earned his first player of the week award[8] and won the NBL Most Improved Player while also earning All-NBL Third Team honours.[9][10] In his third season with Adelaide, he led the league in rebounding (8.1 per game)[11] and earned All-NBL Second Team honours.

In the 2013–14 season, Johnson helped the 36ers reach the NBL Grand Final series while earning All-NBL First Team honors.[12][13] He was also named the 36ers Club MVP for the third straight year.[14]

Johnson started the 2014–15 season in Poland with Stelmet Zielona Góra,[15][16] but returned to the Adelaide 36ers in January 2015.[17][18][19][20]

In the 2015–16 season, Johnson's 9.3 rebounds per game saw him lead the NBL in rebounding for the second time while once again earning All-NBL Second Team honours. In the 2016–17 season, Johnson helped the 36ers win the minor premiership while earning All-NBL First Team honours. In the 2017–18 season, Johnson helped the 36ers reach the NBL Grand Final series while earning All-NBL First Team honours. In the 2018–19 season, Johnson served as captain of the 36ers for the first time.[21] He went on to win the Club MVP and earn All-NBL Second Team honours.[22]

In October 2019, Johnson played his 250th game for the 36ers as well as his 300th in the NBL.[23] He scored an NBL career-high 38 points in a loss to the Cairns Taipans on 18 January 2020.[24] He went on to win the Club MVP for the fifth time.[25]

In May 2020, Johnson's contract with the 36ers was extended until the end of the 2022–23 season.[26] He was named co-captain for the 2020–21 season.[27]

Off-season stints

Johnson is a long-time Australian state league player, having played for the Melbourne Tigers (Big V, 2008–09);[28] Willetton Tigers (SBL, 2010); South Adelaide Panthers (Premier League, 2011), West Adelaide Bearcats (Premier League, 2013–14);[29][30] Sturt Sabres (Premier League, 2016);[30] and Forestville Eagles (Premier League, 2018).[30]

Additionally, Johnson has had a number of off-season stints overseas, with his first stint abroad coming following the 2013–14 NBL season when he played in Puerto Rico for Piratas de Quebradillas.[31][32] He went on to play in New Zealand for the Wellington Saints in 2015,[33] before returning to Puerto Rico in 2016 to play for Santeros de Aguada.[34] In 2017, he played for Petrochimi Bandar Imam in Iran;[35] in 2018, he played for Ferro Carril Oeste in Argentina;[36] and in 2019, he played for Earth Friends Tokyo Z in Japan. He returned to Japan in March 2020 for a one-game stint with SeaHorses Mikawa.

National team career

In 2019, Johnson made his debut for the Australian Boomers playing in the FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers.[37]

References
  1. "Daniel Johnson". fiba.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  2. Ellison, Liam (29 November 2018). "DANIEL JOHNSON'S RISE FROM WILLETTON TO THE BOOMERS". australia.basketball. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  3. "Past Athletes". ausport.gov.au. Archived from the original on 12 February 2014.
  4. "Johnson Signs LOI to Play Basketball at Pepperdine". pepperdinesports.com. 14 March 2007. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  5. "NBL Player Spotlight – Daniel Johnson". tbldaily.com. 3 November 2011. Archived from the original on 1 March 2016.
  6. "Daniel Johnson". sports-reference.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  7. "Player statistics for Daniel Johnson – NBL". SportsTG.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  8. Nagy, Boti (2 November 2011). "Daniel Johnson ends Sixer's award drought". The Advertiser. Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 21 September 2013.
  9. "ANBL Awards - Breakers Overlooked Again". sportstg.com. 28 March 2012. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  10. "ADELAIDE THE TEAM FOR JOHNSON". adelaide36ers.com. 29 March 2012. Archived from the original on 25 September 2013.
  11. "All Time Leaders". NBL.com.au. Archived from the original on 23 September 2017.
  12. "Rotnei Clarke takes out the 2013/14 MVP Award". NBL.com.au. 2 April 2014. Archived from the original on 4 April 2014.
  13. "GF Report: Perth thrash 36ers, claim sixth title". NBL.com.au. 13 April 2014. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014.
  14. "2013/14 Club Award Winners". adelaide36ers.com. 29 April 2014. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014.
  15. "Stelmet Zielona Gora reaches Down Under for big man Johnson". euroleague.net. 24 July 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  16. "Stelmet Zielona Gora signs Daniel Johnson for two years". Sportando.com. 24 July 2014. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014.
  17. "Daniel Johnson and Stelmet Zielona Gora part ways". Sportando.com. 18 January 2015. Archived from the original on 21 January 2015.
  18. Johnson Back In 36ers Blue
  19. Daniel Johnson returns to Adelaide
  20. Johnson signs three-year deal with the 36ers
  21. "Daniel Johnson named captain of the Adelaide 36ers". Adelaide36ers.com. 4 October 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
  22. "Johnson crowned Adelaide 36ers Most Valuable Player". Adelaide36ers.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  23. "DJ reaches 250 for 36ers, now 300 in NBL". Adelaide36ers.com. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
  24. Warren, Adrian (19 January 2020). "Queensland teams charge towards NBL finals". The West Australian. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  25. "Johnson awarded fifth 36ers MVP". Adelaide36ers.com. 22 February 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  26. "Daniel Johnson Signs Contract Extension". Adelaide36ers.com. 6 May 2020. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
  27. "Leadership Group Announced". Adelaide36ers.com. 13 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
  28. "Player statistics for Daniel Johnson – Big V". SportsTG.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  29. "South Australian Basketball Shines Bright at Halls". SportsTG.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  30. "Player statistics for Daniel Johnson – Premier League". SportsTG.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  31. "Piratas de Quebradillas sign Daniel Johnson". 7 April 2014. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014.
  32. "DJ Strawberry signs with Piratas de Quebradillas". 27 June 2014. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015.
  33. Player statistics for Daniel Johnson – NZNBL
  34. SANTEROS FIRMAN A DANIEL JOHNSON... (in Spanish)
  35. Petrochimi tabs Daniel Johnson, ex 36ers
  36. Ferrocarril lands Daniel Johnson, ex Forestville E.
  37. "Daniel Johnson". fiba.basketball. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
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