Robert Johnson

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For the moment at least, all Robert Johnson can do is wait.

Johnson headed back home to Richmond, Va. Wednesday after working out for the Pacers at St. Vincent Center, his third audition of the pre-draft process after competing for Oklahoma City and Milwaukee. He's hopeful of invitations to more, but nothing has been finalized.

So he'll wait. What's another week when you've been waiting four years for a dream to come true?

Johnson went through this process a year ago following his junior season at Indiana University, but returned for his senior season. He had little choice given the meager amount draft interest he inspired, and it was the right one, anyway. He averaged 14 points his final season with the Hoosiers, 14.6 points in conference play to earn honorable mention all-Big Ten recognition.

He feels like a much different player than a year ago this time, and believes he's acquitted himself well.

"At this point I'm playing a lot more free," he said. "I'm just taking everything I learned and I'm giving myself a chance by the way I'm performing."

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It's still not a great chance based on the mock drafts, none of which predict Johnson to go in the first or second round. Size works against him, too. He was listed at 6-foot-4 on the information sheet handed to the media, and he acknowledged he was only "about" that height. He was listed at 6-3 at IU, and that might be a bit of a stretch, too.

That creates a challenge for someone trying to impress NBA scouts as a shooting guard. Johnson will have to do it primarily with 3-point shooting. He hit 39 percent of those attempts over his four seasons at IU, and had his share of outbursts. He hit a school-record nine of them at Iowa last season in a 29-point game, and had five against Notre Dame in the  Crossroads Classic.

Consistency was an issue. He hit 2-of-16 3-pointers over a four-game stretch in December, and 5-of-24 in late December and early January. Still, it all averaged out to a solid rate of accuracy, but it will take every bit of that for his outside shot at playing in the NBA to reach fruition.

He's trying to impress NBA teams with more than that, however.

"That I'm talented enough, that I can make shots, that I'm strong enough and athletic enough to defend multiple positions," he said.

That can be difficult to show in a typical pre-draft workout, but it's Johnson's best hope. He wasn't invited to play in the Portsmouth Invitational or the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, so the workouts become more important for him than most to leave a positive impression.

Johnson, a former four-star recruit for IU, was one of six participants on Wednesday, joining Creighton's Marcus Foster, who was invited back a second time; Missouri's Jordan Barnett; Louisville's Quentin Snider; Ohio State's Jae'sean Tate; and George Washington's Yuta Watanabe.

The session wasn't open to the media other than post-practice shooting, so it's impossible to offer an evaluation.

"We just competed," Johnson said. "A lot of three-on-three things, to see how you play in concepts, how well you pick up things."

The most realistic scenario for Johnson is to hope to get on an NBA Summer League team to gain exposure, and then find a spot on a team in the G League or overseas. This isn't the time for being realistic, though, as he ponders his future with his agent and family members.

"We just talk about taking it one step at a time and giving it everything I have and assessing where I am after that," he said.

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johnson-takes-another-shot-at-nba-draft

Johnson Takes Another Shot at NBA Draft

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Height: 6-3
Weight: 195
Position: SG
College: Indiana
Age: 23

PPG: 14.0
RPG: 4.5
APG: 2.7
BLK: 0.2
STL: 0.8

2017-18 (Senior):
Earned All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (Coaches)...Named MVP of the Hoosier Tip-Off Classic averaging 15.8 points in the 4 game event...Tied Crossroads Classic record with 5 3FG Made vs. Notre Dame...21st in IU career scoring with 1,413points and 4th in 3FG Made with 239...5th in Big Ten in minutes played, 9th in 3FGM, 7th in 3FGM in Big Ten games...Tied school record with 9 3FGM at Iowa which also set Carver-Hawkeye Arena standard***

Four-year starter ... made 118 career starts... earned All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors from conference coaches ... averaged 16.3 points and shot 50.0% from long distance in the month of February... started all 31 games, averaged 14.0 points and finished second on the team in assists (84)... averaged 14.6 points and led the Hoosiers with 52 assists in Big Ten play... had 14 points, 4 boards and 4 assists against Howard... had 12 points, 5 boards and 3 assists at Seton Hall... had 21 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks against USF... had 10 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists against ASU.... finished with a game-high 18 points against Eastern Michigan... made 6 of 8 field goals and 4 of 6 treys...  chipped in 17 points against Duke...  had 9 points, 7 boards and 3 assists against Iowa...scored 20 points and added 6 boards and 4 assists in 43 minutes against Notre Dame...  Blocked potential game-winning shot by UND’s Matt Farrell in final seconds of the game... had a team-high 17 points against Fort Wayne.... had 12 points against Tennessee Tech and 13 against Youngstown State... had 14 points and a season-high 5 assists against Wisconsin... notched career-high with 28 points and had 7 boards and 7 assists at Minnesota... finished with a team-high 17 points - including 5 made 3FG - and added 6 rebounds against Northwestern... scored 21 points and was 4-of-6 from long distance at Michigan State....had 12 points, 8 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals against Maryland... finished with 21 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists against Purdue... had 19 points and hit 3 treys at Rutgers.... had 11 points, 5 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals against Minnesota... had 14 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists against Illinois... had a career-high 29 points and tied school record with 9 3FGM at Iowa... also had 4 assists against the Hawkeyes...  had 16 points, 6 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals at Nebraska... finished with 17 points and 4 assists against Ohio State...  made 2 free throws with 7 second in overtime to force a second overtime... played a season-high 43 minutes against the Buckeyes... will graduate with a degree in sport marketing and management.

2016-17 (Junior)
Played in all 34 games, making 32 starts ... ranked second on the team averaging 12.8 points per game ... finished junior year with 978 career points ... his 85 assists were second on the team while he led the Hoosiers with 29 steals ... averaged 4.4 rebounds per game and shot 37.0 percent from the 3-point line (70-of-189) ... increased his scoring to 13.2 points per game in Big Ten play ... scored in double figures in 25 games, including three games of 20-plus points ... contributed 10 points in the win over Kansas to open the season ... scored 16 points with five rebounds and five assists in the home opener against Umass Lowell .... registered 16 points and six rebounds at Fort Wayne ... dropped 11 points with three steals and six rebounds agsint North Carolina... totaled 16 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and two blocks against Delaware State ... registered 20 points with a season high six made 3s against Austin Peay ... recorded 19 points in 21 minutes with five made 3s against Nebraska ... scored 18 points while shooting 7-of-11 from the field against Illinois ... totaled 17 points to go with seven boards and three assists against Penn State ... tallied 17 points and four rebouns against Michigan State ... dropped a career-high 27 points to record a double-double with 11 rebounds against Penn State ... became just the second player in the country since the 1996-97 season to record 19 points, six rebounds, seven assists and five steals when he did it at Iowa ... posted 26 points, six assists and six rebounds in the final regular season game at Ohio State ... logged 13 points and seven rebounds against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament.

2015-16 (Sophomore)
Played in 30 games and made 22 starts ... averaged 8.1 points and 3.3 rebounds ... opened the season with 12 points and three assists in the win against Eastern Illinois ... tallied seven points, five assists, four rebounds, and a steal in the win over Austin Peay ... scored 14 points in the Wake Forest game ... registered 12 points, six assists, three rebounds, and three steals in the Alcorn State game ... compiled eight points and six rebounds at Duke ... dropped 16 points (5-of-5 for 3PT) in the win over IPFW ... scored a season-high 17 points, grabbed 3 boards, and dished out three assists in the win over Notre Dame ... registered 11 points, six rebounds, and six assists in the win over Ohio State ... tallied 13 points, seven boards, and six dimes in the win over Illinois ... scored nine points, hauled in six rebounds, and added two steals in the win over Northwestern ... scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds in the win over Michigan ... netted 13 points in the win over Iowa ... scored 11 points and added five assists against Michigan State ... chipped in 13 points along with three rebounds and three assists against Nebraska ... tallied six points and three rebounds in the win against Purdue before leaving with an injured ankle ... after missing four games with the ankle injury, returned against Chattanooga in the NCAA Tournament to score seven points and hand out six assists... drained two three points field goals in the first half against Kentucky in the Round of 32.

2014-15 (Freshman)
Played in all 34 games, making 33 starts ... ranked second on the team with 79 assists and 29 steals this season ... opened the season with 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals in the season opener against Mississippi Valley State ... scored 21 points to go along with five rebounds and six assists in the second game of the season against Texas Southern ... dropped 13 points in a win over Lamar ... stuffed the stat sheet with six points, three rebounds and nine assists against Pitt ... posted 10 points and seven rebounds against Savannah State ... registered 11 points, three rebounds and three assists against Georgetown ... in his Big Ten debut, scored 14 points in a road win at Nebraska ... logged nine points, six rebounds and three assists at Michigan State ... his top scoring output in Big Ten play came against Penn State, when he scored 20 points (4-of-6 3FG) and had two steals ... contributed seven points and six rebounds in the win over Maryland ... collected nine points and two steals at Purdue ... helped a second half rally at Wisconsin and finished with 16 points, three rebounds and two assists ... in the win over Minnesota, the freshman scored 19 points (5-of-8 3FG), grabbed three rebounds and handed out four assists ... registered eight points and three assists at Rutgers ... recorded 11 points and four assists in the only meeting of the season with Northwestern ... had five points in both of the final two games of the regular season against Iowa and Michigan State ... started against Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament and had six points, three rebounds and two assists ... finished with 10 points, three rebounds and two assists against Maryland in the Quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament ... Tallied four points, three assists and two rebounds in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament against Wichita St.

Canada Trip (Summer 2014)
Appeared in all five games ... started in four ... average 9.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and led the team with 2.2 steals ... in game one against Laval scored 12 points, had five rebounds and five assists ... against Ottawa had eight points, team-high six assists, three rebounds and three steals ... scored 12 points, had three rebounds and one assist against Carleton ... in game four against McGill grabbed seven rebounds, three assists and two steals ... had 17 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals against UQAM.

Prep/Personal
Averaged 24.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game as a senior at Benedictine College Prep and head coach Ryan Marable ... named first team all-state in addition to All-Metro Player of the Year by the Richmond Times-Dispatch ... ranked No. 42 by Rivals.com, No. 44 by ESPN, No. 48 by 247Sports and No. 55 by Scout.com in the 2014 recruiting class ... connected on 36.3 percent of his attempts from 3-point territory during his senior season ... scored 10 points in 20 minutes of action at the 2014 Derby Classic ... also advanced to the finals of the 3-point contest at the Derby Classic and was voted "Fan Favorite" ... participated in the NBPA Top 100 Camp ... averaged 17 points and 5.5 rebounds as a junior ... played AAU basketball for Boo Williams, the uncle/guardian of IU teammate Troy Williams ... parents are Robert and Tamara Johnson ... has three brothers, Yahkee, Malik and Anthony ... majoring in Sport Communication ... was born May 27, 1995

robert-johnson-2018-draft-prospect

Robert Johnson: 2018 Draft Prospect

The Pacers will hold their fourth pre-draft workout in preparation for the 2018 NBA Draft on Wednesday, June 13 at the St. Vincent Center.

The six players scheduled to participate in workouts are Jordan Barnett (Missouri), Marcus Foster (Creighton), Robert Johnson (Indiana), Quentin Snider (Louisville), Jae'Sean Tate (Ohio State), and Yuta Watanabe (George Washington).

The 2018 NBA Draft will take place on Thursday, June 21 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The Pacers own two picks in this year's draft, one pick in both the first and second rounds, the 23rd and 50th overall selections.

PROSPECT BIOS: Barnett »   Foster »   Johnson »   Snider »   Tate »   Wideman »

Robert Johnson

Johnson Takes Another Shot at NBA Draft

Robert Johnson: 2018 Draft Prospect

Pacers to Hold Fourth Pre-Draft Workout on Wednesday, June 13