DC ASSAULT STAR - DerMarr Johnson talks DC hoops - ALL-MET ELITE

DC ASSAULT STAR

 DerMarr Johnson 

talks DC hoops 

ALL-MET ELITE

NEWPORT PREP HS.

KENSINGTON MD.

 

Courtesy of 

4thnsports.sportsblog.com

TB: You are from the Washington DC area tell me how that impacted the way you play the game of basketball?

DJ: When I was young just being about to cross guys up was cool, I worked a lot on dribble moves. I always played against older bigger guys , so when I got tall I was naturally a guard. I didn't grow up in a gym played outside, no foul calls makes u tough.

TB: Growing up who were guys that you looked up to? The DMV has turned out some impressive players before and after you. What would you say is unique about the DMV style of play?

DJ: I looked up to Curt Smith, Greg Jones, Moochie Norris, Lonnie Harrell, Walt Williams, Lawrence Moten. After me the list is very long. What's unique about DC players is our cross over. But we got just a lot of good players who do a lot of different things.

TB: You were rated as high as the number 1 player in the country coming out of high school. How was the everyday hassle of being considered one of the nations elite players? In a time where rumors and breaking news are reported every second on these guys, how do you think your era would have handled this coming up?

DJ: I went from just a around the way young kid, lucky to play with older guys to a pro prospect very fast. And life changed quick, I didn't even know how AAU was. That they had all these camps and rankings I just played because it was fun. All the traveling and meeting important people, and NBA never crossed my mind. Now it's diff parents treat their kid like a business very early.It's all kind of AAU teams now everybody trying to get payed off kids, back then it was only a few teams we played to get out the hood.