点击查看原文：Johnson ready for sixth season as Spurs' longest-tenured player

Johnson ready for sixth season as Spurs’ longest-tenured player

Spurs Keldon Johnson poses for pictures during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.

Keldon Johnson was quick to correct a wisecracking reporter who asked him on media day if he was ready for his 10th year.

“Sixth, sixth,” Johnson said. “You make me feel old, man.”

With his 25th birthday coming Oct. 11, the forward is still a young player. But the reporter busting Johnson’s chops had a point: It does seem as though the Virginia native has been with the club for at least a decade now.

While only 20 players have logged more campaigns with the Silver & Black, Johnson’s total is still a modest amount when compared to Tim Duncan’s club-record 19 seasons or Tony Parker’s 17.

But it’s enough to make Johnson the team’s longest-tenured current player, a role he has fully embraced.

“It’s definitely an honor and a blessing to be part of an organization like this for such a long period of time, to be able to stick around and thrive,” he said. “That’s the main thing. And any knowledge I can pass on to the younger guys or any of the new guys coming in, I am willing to do.”

When last season ended, speculation was rampant as the draft approached that Johnson was on the trading block, but there he was Monday being his usual upbeat, smiling, shout-at-the-top-of-his-lungs self.

It was a comforting sight for his teammates.

“That’s my friend,” Julian Champagnie said of a player he’s called the “heart and soul” of the team.

The Spurs selected Johnson 29th overall in 2019 after his freshman season at Kentucky. Early in his career, he played with and learned from the likes of LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan, a pair of stars who taught him plenty of values and skills he’s now eager to convey to neophytes.

“I can definitely tell KJ is the one who has been here the longest,” Champagnie said. “His approach to this season shows it. He’s gotten to play with older guys and now he is one of them. He is kind of just following in their footsteps, taking that next step in his career.”

Long before the start of training camp, Johnson was setting a good example by willingly giving up the No. 3 he’s worn since he was in middle school to Chris Paul – a player he said was one of his role models growing up – after the Spurs signed the future Hall of Fame point guard in July.

“The main thing was respect. I feel like he deserved to wear number three,” said Johnson, who will sport No. 0 this season, which he last wore when he was a rookie playing for the Austin Spurs in the G League.

Johnson earned respect last season from his teammates and coaches when he moved into a sixth man role in December after starting the first 27 games of the season and 60-plus games in each of the previous three years. Champagnie replaced Johnson in the starting unit.

Coach Gregg Popovich made the move to bolster the bench and give rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama and guard Devin Vassell bigger roles on offense.

Although he admitted after the season “it was hard to adjust,” Johnson accepted his new role without complaint and finished the season averaging 15.7 points after posting a career-high 22.0 in 2022-23. Johnson averaged 16.9 points as a starter in 2023-24, a number that dropped a tad to 15 points in the 42 games he logged as a reserve.

"He showed a lot of leadership in that regard,” Popovich said in April when it was announced a nagging foot injury would end Johnson’s season with four games remaining.

As he enters this year, Johnson believes having experiences both as a starter and reserve will be viewed as a positive on his resume.

“I have had many different roles, and it just shows the versatility I can bring to the game,” he said. “Whatever role I am put in, I will be prepared.”

It’s uncertain four days into camp what role Johnson will have this season. But no matter what, he believes he’s primed for a strong year after shedding a good amount of weight in the offseason so he can “hit the ground running” when the season starts at Dallas on Oct. 24.

“I prepared myself for whatever situation I need to be put in, to be in my role and to put my team in the best situation to win,” he said.

Johnson declined to tell reporters how much weight he dropped, but the number appears to be 10 pounds after the Spurs listed him at 6-foot-5, 215 pounds on their camp roster after listing him at 225 pounds on their roster for last season’s finale.

“I feel like I move a lot better,” he said. “I feel like I am more explosive. And a lot of it does come down to the weight. I am proud of myself.”

Johnson’s decision to slim down underscored his commitment to the team and his future.

“Just making it a lifestyle, not a diet, not just something that is temporary for me,” said a player who has spoken frequently about his love for the barbecue and sides at Buc-ees. “This is something I plan on making a lifestyle for me and my family, eating the right things and being in shape.”

Johnson also focused on improving defensively this summer. His play on that end of the court has been a weak spot throughout his career, but he never stops trying to improve.

“I feel like I am ready to defend,” he said. “That has been my main thing to focus on this summer.”

Johnson has three seasons remaining on the $80-million contract extension he signed in the summer of 2022 that will pay him $19 million this season, second on the club to Vassell’s $29.3 million. If he plays through his current pact, Johnson will have eight seasons as a Spur. Only 10 players logged more: Duncan, Parker, Manu Ginobili (16), David Robinson (14), Sean Elliott (11), Matt Bonner (10), Avery Johnson (10), Patty Mills (10), George Gervin (nine) and Johnny Moore (nine).

But for Johnson, it’s all about the present.

“I feel great,” he said. “I’m ready for a new season. I feel like we are going to go out there with the mindset and the pieces to win.”

San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) drives into Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) during the first half at Frost Bank Center on Monday, March 25, 2024, in San Antonio, Texas. The Spurs defeated the Suns, 104-102.

Spurs Keldon Johnson during Spurs Media Day activities Monday morning at the Victory Capital Performance Center.

SAN ANTONIO, TX - MARCH 17 Keldon Johnson #3 of the San Antonio Spurs celebrates after hitting a three-point basket against the Brooklyn Nets in the second half at Moody Center on March 17, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas.

San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) celebrates a score against the Brooklyn Nets during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Austin, Texas, Sunday, March 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 07: Keldon Johnson #3 of the San Antonio Spurs reacts after making a three-point shot against Sacramento Kings during the second half at Golden 1 Center on March 07, 2024 in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.

HOUSTON, TEXAS - MARCH 05: Jabari Smith Jr. #10 of the Houston Rockets defends a shot by Keldon Johnson #3 of the San Antonio Spurs in the second half at Toyota Center on March 05, 2024 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) hugs Keldon Johnson after a basket during the first half of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 23: Keldon Johnson #3 of the San Antonio Spurs drives past the defense of Spencer Dinwiddie #26 of the Los Angeles Lakers during the second half of a game at Crypto.com Arena on February 23, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.

San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) reacts to an official’s call during the second half of the team’s NBA basketball game against the Sacramento Kings in Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. The Kings won 127-122. (AP Photo/Randall Benton)

San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson (3) drives past Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray, front right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Randall Benton)