Suns Forward Cameron Johnson Putting in Work During Offseason
Phoenix Suns forward Cameron Johnson has been working on his game this offseason.
“We’ve got a good group that’s been in the facility four, five days a week. Working. Workouts. That’s something we kind of missed out on last year," Johnson told Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin in an exclusive one-on-one interview.
"We earned that by transitioning from the finals. We just finished at this time last year. Now we have this summer to just work on our games and get better. This is when it’s fun.
"This is the time you explore you game and work on things that you see from previous seasons where you can be better. Where you can impact winning more. It’s been a lot of fun working on those things. Just enjoying life.”
The climb of Johnson has been admirable to watch thus far. After being drafted at pick No. 11 in the 2019 NBA Draft, Minnesota immediately shipped him to Phoenix in a trade that would net the Suns a pivotal role player with potential to grow more in the future.
Now, eligible for a rookie contract extension, Johnson knows the work continues in order for him to eventually step in a starting role.
“Playing with the ball in my hands," said Johnson when asked what specifically he's been working on.
"Being somebody that can be relied on as a scorer and creator. Not just somebody that relies on other people to get their buckets. I think it takes a balance. In the NBA world, only one person can be holding the ball all the time. So, you have to find ways to be very good at being effective without having the ball in your hands all the time, but in addition to that, I want to be somebody that can be relied upon to score, to create, to use ball screens and to bring the ball up the court.
"That’s been the main focus. I think that’s something both Mikal [Bridges] and I are focusing on. Give our team an added dimension in the future.”
Much like everybody else, there's still a sour taste of how the Suns ended their season in Johnson's mouth.
“No. I think as a competitor, as a hooper, there are certain games in your life that you’ll never fully move past," answered Johnson when asked if he has moved on from the Game 7 blowout loss to the Mavericks.
"The next day, you wake up in the morning and it’s just weird that the season is over, but the sun still came up. There are still more things to fight for. The silver lining is that you get an extra chip on your shoulder. They’re adding up, too, I tell you that much, and it gives you motivation for every workout in the morning and every extra lift, whatever it may be.
"It’s like, we did get pounded in a Game 7 and yes, that was embarrassing. We all can agree on that and so let’s do our best to not let that happen again. It’s definitely taking a bad experience and trying to turn it into a tool in my tool box.”
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