Stanley Johnson writes column for the Players’ Tribune
By Duncan Smith
Stanley Johnson wrote a column for the Players’ Tribune on Thursday, delving into the challenges facing the young rookie in his debut season.
If this basketball thing doesn’t work out for Stanley Johnson, he might just have a future in writing. The Piston rookie showed he has a way with words when he wrote a column for the Players’ Tribune on Thursday, exploring the challenges of being a rookie in the NBA and guarding LeBron James in the playoffs.
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The Players’ Tribune was founded by Michigan native and future MLB Hall of Famer Derek Jeter as an unfiltered outlet for athletes to express themselves to the masses. Athletes write columns and articles about their lives, experiences, the highs and lows of life, and it came time for Stanley Johnson to speak on what he knows of life as a pro athlete.
The best college athletes usually excel in athleticism and explosiveness, more so than your average athlete. It’s why the best in college stand out there and then look like they’re standing still in the NBA. Everybody in the NBA is athletic and explosive. A 20-year old who has quicks and hops in the NBA is just another player, one who probably doesn’t have grown man strength yet.
Stanley Johnson experienced this first hand:
"This is the NBA. There are so many athletic players who — even when you think you’ve got a step on them, they’re right next to you. When I was at Arizona, the lane was my home. If I had a step on you, I was going to the rack. No question. But after my first couple games in the league, the lane was looking slimmer almost weekly. I couldn’t finish in the lane like I had in the past. But I couldn’t focus on that. I had to focus only on what I could control ."
Johnson expressed an admiration for how aggressive and relentless Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks is on the floor. He found inspiration and education in players like Anthony:
"Playing against him (Anthony) and other great players during the regular season gave me a lot of confidence. With every game, I was picking up on new moves that I could mix in with mine, so when it was time for the playoffs I was battle-tested mentally and physically."
Like Johnson suggests, by the time the playoffs rolled around he did seem like a new player. Aggressive and confident, Johnson found out the night before the playoffs began that he was going to be guarding LeBron James. No big deal. Just go keep one of the best players of all time and probably the best player of his generation under wraps.
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It’s a great article, a very illuminating and enjoyable read. I’ll let Stanley Johnson himself tell you the rest of the story, so please do yourself a favor and give it a read.