Jalen Johnson
Jalen Tyrese Johnson (born December 18, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils. He was a consensus five-star recruit and one of the best small forwards in the 2020 class. Johnson finished his high school career at Nicolet High School in Glendale, Wisconsin. High school career. Johnson played his first two years of high school basketball for Sun Prairie High School in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. He played under current head coach Jeff Boos. As a freshman in 2016–17 , Johnson averaged 15.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.1 blocks to help his team to a 20–4 record. They were upset in the Regional Finals by Madison East High School. As a sophomore in 2017–18, Johnson averaged 18.4 points, 9.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.9 steals, and 1.5 blocks to help his team to a 25–2 record. He led the Cardinals to their first state tournament Division 1 semifinals appearance. After his sophomore year he transferred to Nicolet High School in Glendale, Wisconsin. Johnson helped lead Nicolet to the Division 2 State Championship. He was named the Associated  Press Player of the Year for Wisconsin. In 2019, Johnson transferred to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida for his senior year. On January 5, 2020, he left IMG Academy, before returning to Nicolet, though not necessarily to play basketball. He was ruled eligible on February 8 to play the remainder of the season for Nicolet after never playing in a game for IMG. As a senior, Johnson averaged 24.6 points, 10.9 rebounds and 4.8 assists in 9 games. He was selected to play in the Jordan Brand Classic, which was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recruiting. Johnson was rated  as a five-star recruit and the No.13 overall recruit in the 2020 high school class. On July 4, 2019, Johnson committed to play college basketball at Duke University over offers from Arizona, Kentucky, and Wisconsin. College career. In his college debut on November 28, 2020, Johnson had 19 points, 19 rebounds, and four blocks in an 81–71 win against Coppin State. On November 30, 2020, Johnson earned ACC Freshman of the week honors. On January 26, 2021, Johnson scored 18 points and 6 rebounds in a 75–68 win over Georgia Tech. In his lone short stint at Duke, Johnson  appeared in 13 games as a Blue Devil averaging 11.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.0 assist per game. He missed three games with a foot injury in December 2020. On February 15, 2021, Johnson announced that he would forgo the remainder of the season, effectively ending his college career and declare for the 2021 NBA draft. Professional career. Atlanta Hawks (2021–present). On July 29, 2021, Johnson was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the 20th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. On August 4, 2021, he signed with the Hawks. He recorded a double-double with 20 points on 8 -12 shooting and 10 rebounds, leading his team in both, as well as 5 turnovers in 25 minutes at his debut for the team, a 85-83 loss against the Boston Celtics in the 2021 NBA summer league. Johnson was assigned to the Hawks' NBA G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks, for the G League season opener. On March 28, Johnson went 6-8 for a then career-high 12 points as he posterized Kelly Olynyk.