Recruiting report: Joe Johnson (2016)
WAYNESVILLE — A four-year starter for the Waynesville Tigers, 2016 point guard Joe Johnson III has been a constant in the Tigers’ backcourt throughout the past four season. A 5-foot-11 senior, Johnson is a strong perimeter shooter who can handle…
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Continue ReadingWAYNESVILLE — A four-year starter for the Waynesville Tigers, 2016 point guard Joe Johnson III has been a constant in the Tigers’ backcourt throughout the past four season.
A 5-foot-11 senior, Johnson is a strong perimeter shooter who can handle the point guard duties or play off the ball. He has helped the Tigers to a 12-12 record this season and a No. 2 seed in the upcoming Missouri Class 5 District 10 tournament.
But Waynesville head coach Chris Pilz says that Johnson has helped his team in other ways as the Tigers graduate Indiana freshman Juwan Morgan from a team that went 19-7 last year.
“He’s been a four-year starter and he is a great kid with a big heart,” Pilz said. “He is probably a better person than he a basketball player. He is a leader at our school and on the court. And he is a heck of a basketball player. When he is going well, our team is a lot harder to beat.”
Johnson has always been known as a knock down perimeter shooter, but has also handled much of the Tigers’ point guard duties throughout his high school career.
“People say I’m a shooter and I like to shoot, but I also want to say that I’m a point guard and that I can do both,” Johnson said. “But I am a shooter. Usually I am trying to bring a positive attitude to the team and trying to make the simple plays.”
Johnson does not currently have any offers, but has heard from several schools, including Angelo State, St. Josesph’s (Ind.) and others.
He says he is still working on elements of his game as he looks towards the future.
“My off hand, when I injured my right hand during the offseason I was able to work on my left ever since that happened,” Johnson said. “And my mid-range. My in-and-out move, my pulp, spot-up 3s.”
Johnson has played for several different AAU teams over the course of his high school career and said the experience has helped push his game to new heights.
“It’s been a good experience, meeting new players and coaches and getting used to the environment and new players has been good,” Johnson said. “In the future I’m going to be meeting new people and learning how to handle things, so I think it’s good.”