Washington Wizards rookie Tre Johnson was fielding questions from a group of reporters Friday afternoon when a couple of his teammates walked behind him toward the team bus.
“Yes! Tre Johnson is home!” teammate Bub Carrington exclaimed.
Johnson, a former Lake Highlands standout and Garland native, had only been to American Airlines Center a handful of times as a spectator. But this was the first time he’s been to the home of the Dallas Mavericks as an NBA player. Washington selected Johnson with the No. 6 pick in the 2025 NBA draft
While most homecomings bring back feelings of nostalgia, Johnson was focused on the task at hand: leaving Dallas with a win, regardless of the opponent. Hearing his teammates poke fun sparked one of the only smiles of his five-minute media session at Friday’s shootaround.
Mavericks
Johnson said he didn’t watch too much of the Mavericks growing up, but he expects to have some friends and family in attendance. It’ll be a similar scene to his short stint at Texas, where he averaged an SEC-leading 19.9 points per game as a freshman.
“I don’t think it’s too much different because I had a lot of family coming down when I was playing at Texas,” Johnson said. “It won’t be too much different, I think of it just as a big family reunion.”
Johnson is coming off a successful NBA debut, finishing with 16 points off the bench in the Wizards’ season-opening loss to Milwaukee on Wednesday. He became the first Wizards rookie to score at least 15 points in a first game since Tom Gugliotta scored 20 points on Nov. 6, 1992.
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Washington selected Johnson with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft. Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg was the consensus No. 1 pick. Johnson embraced the idea of matching up against not only Flagg, but anyone who stood in his way.
“I’ll matchup against anybody. It don’t matter who it is, I’m just really trying to get the win for the team,” Johnson said.
Wizards coach Brian Keefe gave Johnson credit for his dedicated approach to his rookie season, citing his work ethic as an intangible skill.
“Like he’s approached everything,” Keefe said. “This guy’s a gym rat, craftsman, totally committed to the game. Don’t think that’s changed since he was probably 15 years old.”
Johnson spent three years of his high school career at Lake Highlands before transferring to Link Academy in Missouri, before committing to Texas. He was named the 2022-23 SportsDayHS boys basketball Player of the Year after leading Lake Highlands to its first state championship in 55 years. He averaged 21.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and knocked down 84 3-pointers for Lake Highlands. He scored 29 points in the 6A state championship victory.
Now, he returns to the area where he made his mark as a teenager. But that’ll be secondary to the task at hand.
“I’m sure that’ll be a nice moment for him, but he’s preparing like usual,” Keefe said. “This is what we love about Tre. Luckily, it’s a guy who loves the game, loves his craft. He’s just doing business as usual. I’m sure it’ll be nice to play in front of his family and friends.”
On Twitter/X: @MikeACurtis2
