ORLANDO – Brice Johnson hasn’t had much time to celebrate his 22nd birthday, nor has he had the time to head to the city that made him the 25th overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.
Just a few days after become the Clippers’ selection, Johnson’s on the other side of the U.S. from Los Angeles, getting his first taste of the NBA in Orlando, where the Clippers are taking part in Summer League.
Clippers.com caught up with Johnson on Friday to get to know the Clippers forward after a few days of practicing with his new team.
What’s been the most challenging adjustment for you so far from college to Summer League?
BJ: “Just learning the terminology – that’s probably the biggest thing. Their terminology is so different. At the end of the day, it’s the same as what I’ve been taught to do, it’s just they say it a different way. So, I’ve got to get adjusted the way they say it and not the way I’ve learned it the last four years.”
For Clippers fans who don’t know, what are some things you like to do when you’re not playing basketball?
BJ: “Anything a typical (22)-year-old would like to do, other than going out. I don’t do the going out thing. I like to go to the beach and stuff, shopping. I don’t get to do much, because basketball takes up a great deal of my time. But other than that, watch movies, play video games, watch TV…”
Do you play sports games?
BJ: “Oh yeah, sports games, Call of Duty, racing games. Any game with a lot of action in it, I like to play it.”
I assume you’re going to play NBA games as yourself now?
BJ: “I wouldn’t play as myself. I’d probably play as (former North Carolina teammate) Marcus (Paige) or something.”
Have you stayed in touch with him through this process?
BJ: “Yeah, I’m going to stay in touch with him. I actually talked to him yesterday.”
Any other interesting facts about yourself that people may not know?
BJ: “The only other fact is my girlfriend went to Duke, and I went to Carolina.”
I’m sure J.J. Redick and your Duke teammates will accept you now.
BJ: “They’ll hate me because of the way I played against them, but they might accept me a little more because of that.”
You wrote a piece for “The Players’ Tribune” shortly before the draft. Is writing something you’re interested in doing?
BJ: “Yeah, I’ve always been interested in doing it, but I didn’t know how to get to do it. My agent, she was able to get me there and I was able to go in there and get to know what they do in a little more detail.”
You talked about the difficulties of transitioning early at North Carolina in your piece. When did you start to realize in college that you could realistically be where you are now?
BJ: “Just throughout the season. Just kept playing and we were winning. Coach (Roy) Williams always said, ‘Winning takes care of everything else.’ He was right about that. I just did what I had to do. I had to step up and help my team, and I stepped up as much as I could.”
And he stayed on you.
BJ: “Absolutely. He probably said my name more than anybody he’s ever coached.”
Do you prefer that kind of coaching style?
BJ: “I mean, I’ve had different types of coaching. That’s the way it worked with him. Whatever coaching Doc (Rivers) wants to do or the rest of the coaches want to do, it’ll work. I’m not going to take it to heart; I’m going to take it as coaching. My dad was my coach and that’s what he taught me. It’s not to hurt your feelings; it’s to help you.”
You mentioned you’ve been to L.A. before, but not since the draft. Has this whole process kind of been a whirlwind for you?
BJ: “It’ll probably hit me more when I get there and I’m able to go around and look at the facilities and see the people that will probably notice me just by me being drafted. It’ll probably be a totally different feel, but right now it hasn’t hit me yet.”