Johnson Already Working Through Player Feedback

DerMarr Johnson has already been tasked with fielding player feedback, and he's excited to catch up.

The newest addition to WVU's bench is diving right into his job. DerMarr Johnson, less than a full week into his new appointment, is already gaining respect from the WVU roster.

"I was talking to Emmitt [Matthews Jr.] today and just basically telling him that kid from TCU, that point guard last game, and his length really bothering him," Johnson said. "I played that role. I'm 6-9 and I'm a guard guarding these smaller guards in the NBA and my length really bothered these guys.

"I told [Emmitt] and Tre that it can be versatile. Being able to guard multiple positions can really help our team, and it can really help them wanting to move on in their career. That's the kind of guys that the NBA looks for."

Johnson was hired on Jan. 16, and has since coached a single WVU game: the 74-65 win over the TCU Horned Frogs. Bob Huggins applauded Johnson's impact, saying that he is already gaining respect from the team.

"I think they'll listen to him," Huggins said. "He's been through a lot. He was a really good high school player and he went to prep school, played for Max Good. Max is extremely well-thought of by virtually every coach in America. He was under Max for a while. He played for us at Cincinnati. He's played for at least four or five different teams in the NBA. His reputation is outstanding, and the type of person he is, you know, he's a quality guy."

Fifteen years playing professional basketball gained Johnson quite a reputation, and he's already begun to impart his wisdom on the seven players he's now in charge of coaching. Johnson has been working specifically with the guards, and Kedrian Johnson and Joe Toussaint spoke to his impact after the TCU win.

"He's an ex-professional basketball player," Johnson said. "We can learn a lot from him. I feel like he can do good for this program and us guards in particular. I look forward to working with him."

"He played for Huggs, so anytime you can get a guy who played for Coach before, it's like a no-brainer," Toussaint added.

Johnson is at the beginning of learning the role he can play on this veteran coaching staff, but he's proven relatable thus far. The next step is fine-tuning strategy and continuing introductions. Johnson has only been back under the WVU umbrella for four days, during which time the staff has thrust him immediately into the fire. He hasn't had time to meet the entire team, but said that he's intent on building relationships with even the players he isn't directly monitoring.

"I'm still working on it," Johnson said of building rapport with the team. "I've been able to have conversations with a few of them. I'm looking forward to catching all of them, at some point, and just really getting to know them and learn more about them and see which ways I can help them on or off the court."

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