Overlooked UNC Basketball Product Powers Victory in Brooklyn

After losing three straight games and five of their past six, the Brooklyn Nets (6-9) needed to get back on the right track against the visiting Charlotte Hornets (5-9) on Tuesday night. And 2017-19 UNC basketball forward answered the call, as the former No. 11 overall draft pick delivered a season-high 34 points — only four shy of his top scoring outing as a pro — in his squad's 116-115 victory.

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The 28-year-old Johnson finished 11-for-20 from the field, 6-for-12 beyond the arc, and 6-for-6 at the foul line across his team-high 38 minutes on the floor. He added five rebounds, four assists, one steal, and two blocks, albeit with five turnovers.

Cam Johnson's 18.1 points per game this season, his third in Brooklyn after spending three and a half years with the Phoenix Suns to begin his NBA career, are 2.6 more than his previous career high. He's also outperforming his previous campaigns in the assist department with 2.9 per outing.

Plus, he's now shooting a career-best 91.8 percent at the charity stripe.

Meanwhile, the Nets' other UNC basketball talent, fourth-year Brooklyn big man Day'Ron Sharpe, has not made his season debut yet. The 23-year-old, a 2020-21 one-and-done in Chapel Hill, is still recovering from a left hamstring injury that he sustained in early October.

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