Former Kansas basketball commit Chris Johnson announced his intention to play for an interconference school today.
Chris Johnson was expected to join the Kansas Jayhawks on campus earlier this month, but he surprised the coaching staff by decommitting last minute. Now, he will head to Austin to play for KU’s interconference rival, Texas.
Johnson was among four signees in KU’s recruiting class alongside Elmarko Jackson, Marcus Adams Jr., and Jamari McDowell. He was ranked the No. 53 player in 2023 via the 247 Sports Composite.
Heading into his senior year, Johnson transferred to Montverde Academy, the No. 2 ranked high school team in the nation. According to MaxPreps, Johnson averaged 5.9 points, 3.6 assists, and 2.1 rebounds per game across 25 contests.
READ: Johnson decommitting opens up roster spot
He will join a guard room that recently lost Sir’Jabari Rice and Marcus Carr. Texas returns Tyrese Hunter for his senior year after he withdrew his name from the NBA Draft.
Texas added a lengthy two-way playmaking combo guard today in 4-Star commit Chris Johnson. https://t.co/k4X27XGjUV
— Hook'em Headlines (@HookemHeadlines) June 26, 2023
Kansas essentially traded the rights to Johnson for transfer Arterio Morris, who spent his freshman year with the Longhorns. In 36 games, Morris averaged 4.6 points and 1.4 rebounds. He figures to have a sizeable role for the Jayhawks this season, whether in the starting lineup or off the bench.
Morris also had something to do with Johnson’s decommitting from the university. Johnson and his mentors were upset that KU had recruited over him, adding the likes of Nick Timberlake in the transfer portal as well. Without a clear path to playing time, he decided to head elsewhere for a clean slate.
Johnson chose Texas over Washington and Arkansas. There is no love lost between Johnson and Kansas, but we wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors. Everyone should make their calendars when Johnson and Texas face the Jayhawks in the conference play in 2024.
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