Johnson Seeking Fresh, Healthy Start Elsewhere

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — There were times during Florida basketball practices that Chase Johnson would rise above (way above) the bodies in the paint, his long arms stretched to grab a rebound or throw down a dunk, and make others in the gym look at each other with a "Whoa" and raised eyebrows.

But only a few times.

That was because Johnson, the 6-foot-9, 220-pound power forward from Ripley, W.Va., rarely practiced with the Gators the last season and a half, the victim of a series of concussions and concussion-like symptoms, as well as a neck injury. On Wednesday, Johnson returned for Christmas break, met with UF coach Mike White later that evening, and announced Thursday he had decided to transfer from the program.

"I'm really thankful for the opportunity the coaches gave me," Johnson said Friday from his home in West Virginia. "I tried to make the best of it. Things happened. I got injured and my mindset wasn't really in the right place. But I appreciate them for believing in me and sticking by me."

Johnson will wait and see who reaches out to him in the coming weeks. A fresh start, maybe at a mid-major program (where, if healthy, he could be an outstanding player), is exactly what he needs.

When on the floor, a healthy Johnson is a terrific athlete and long-strider who can really run the floor and finish strong at the rim. He took advantage of his time off the practice floor to bulk up his body in the weight room and looked the part of a power forward. When he could go, Johnson went hard on the court, played with an element of physicality and could have been an impact role player for a program snake-bit by injuries in the front court the last two seasons.

Instead, two concussions before December of his freshman season prompted the Gators to shut him down for the balance of the season, which cost his overall development. Once back in the fold for his redshirt freshman season, a neck injury again had him watching practice for nearly a month in the run-up to fall workouts and on into the preseason. Again, more development time, more chances to get familiar with the system, was lost.

Once cleared in November, he played mop-up minutes in the second and third games of this season, but then took a hand to the face on Nov. 20, the day the team left for the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas, and was back in concussion protocol. He sat out all three of the B4A games, plus the two after that, and was eventually cleared for contact and a return to practice Dec. 12 — armed with protective headgear — only to be sidelined again a few days later by illness.

Johnson was not on the bench with the team for its Dec. 18 home game against Mercer and did not accompany the Gators on their trip to South Florida for the Orange Bowl Classic last weekend. He went home to West Virginia for break, talked things over with his parents and decided to resume his playing career elsewhere.

"I feel good about the decision," Johnson said.

His final six-game tally (four last season, two this season) showed 23 points and 12 rebounds in 57 minutes.

No one will know how a healthy Johnson would have fared with the Gators, but here's hoping he'll find a safe landing place elsewhere.

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