In 2020, Keyontae Johnson collapsed on the basketball court while playing for the University of Florida. Since then, the highly-ranked forward has been deemed ineligible to play by the Florida Gators medical staff.
However, rather than call time on his career before it even got off the ground, Keyontae Johnson has been looking for a new team who would be willing to play him. Fortunately, it turns out that his decision to join the Kansas State Wildcats has paid dividends, after an impressive returning season.
"He has reportedly been medically cleared to play, which didn't happen last season at Florida," ESPN's Jeff Borzello reported. "As a graduate transfer, Johnson will have one year of eligibility, although he could technically appeal for a medical redshirt after missing most of the last two seasons."
Before suffering his collapse, Johnson was viewed as a stellar future prospect and averaged 14 points and 7.1 rebounds in his last healthy season for the Florida Gators.
Explore the NBA Draft 2024 with our free NBA Mock Draft Simulator & be the GM of your favorite NBA team.
During his time on the sidelines for the Gators, Keyontae Johnson operated in a player-coach role, helping his team with scouting reports and providing motivation for his teammates from the sidelines. However, it will be interesting to see what level he performs at now that he is returning to a basketball court.
Following a successful spell with the Kansas State Wildcats, Keyonte Johnson is hoping to hear his named called on draft night. In 36 games this past season, Johnson averaged 8.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.3 assists.
LA Lakers work out six new players
As reported by ESPN's Dave McMenamin on June 2, the LA Lakers held workouts for six potential draft targets. Those players were:
- Nadir Hifi - France
- Jalen Wilson - Kansas
- Morris Udeze - New Mexico
- Cam Shelton - LMU
- Trequavion Smith - NC State
- Oscar Tshiebwe - Kentucky
The LA Lakers boast two picks in the upcoming draft, one at 17, and another at 47 - both of which will likely help the purple and gold begin adding some much-needed youth to their rotation.
Lakers select Kentucky guard in latest mock draft
According to ESPN's Jonathan Givony's latest mock draft, the LA Lakers could look to improve their guard rotation by selecting 19-year-old combo-guard Cason Wallace out of Kentucky.
"There aren't many better defenders in the class than Wallace. His strong dimensions (comparable to multipositional guards like De'Anthony Melton, Bruce Brown and Tyrese Maxey) give him significant versatility to tap into when paired with his excellent instincts and intensity level, especially when surrounded with talent on a playoff team," Givony wrote.
Considering the Lakers' need for some younger talent, who they can develop and generate value from, it would make sense that they looked to fill a position of need - such as an additional ball-handler or perimeter defender.
However, knowing Rob Pelinka, there's no guarantee that the LA Lakers will still own their picks come draft night - after all, draft night trades are always a surprising addition to the process.