Brice Johnson came out of the University of North Carolina as an athletic power forward with a big upside. He did play all four years at UNC so he’s a little older than the average rookie drafted in 2016. Towards the end of the first round, Johnson went to the Los Angeles Clippers with the 25th overall pick. Quite possibly one of the best situations for him land in.
With the Clippers lack of depth in the front court, there appeared to be a role for Johnson to fill. A springy big man who gobbles up rebounds and protects the rim. Unfortunately for the former Tar Heel, he’s going to be missing the start of his 2016-17 rookie campaign due to a herniated disc in his back.
The Clippers released a statement on Johnson’s injury. They say he has an acute herniated disc in his back and he will be out indefinitely. ESPN’s Jeff Goodman reports that the Clippers rookie big man is expected to miss at least a month.
LA Clippers rookie big man Brice Johnson suffered herniated disc in his lower back in preseason game against the Raptors. Team says he is out indefinitely, source told ESPN that Johnson likely out 4-6 weeks with the injury.
Doc Rivers spoke on Johnson’s injury, courtesy of the Clippers team site.
“That’s tough for a rookie,” Rivers said. “He’s not going to miss the year or anything, but just missing two weeks, three weeks, four weeks, for a guy who’s that young, that’s a hard break for him. But it happens.”
“We identified that in camp for summer league,” Rivers said. “That’s a great example where your eyes tell you a lot of stuff, and the numbers back it up.”
Johnson was a standout during Summer League action, where he averaged 15.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game for the Clippers. Hopefully, he can get back completely healthy and contribute to a team already using a legendary veteran to help hone his craft.
