Nashville–Auburn forward Chaney Johnson never really thought he’d be doing this.
He didn’t think he’d be on a No. 1 team. He never envisioned playing 26 minutes in an SEC Tournament game in front of a nearly sold out Bridgestone Arena. He never envisioned that he’d share the frontcourt with the National Player of the Year, either.
But, here he is.
“I’m honestly just grateful to be in the position I am,” Johnson told Southeastern 16. “Growing up I wasn’t always the tallest. I was kind of always middle of the pack. It’s just a process.”
From the position that Johnson was in, it was hard to think of this process ever leading to something like this. The Alabaster, Alabama, native exited high school with offers from North Georgia, “a couple” NAIA University of Alabama Huntsville, where he ultimately landed. That was it. The lack of Division-I interest wasn’t surprising to him, either.
“I wasn’t good enough,” Johnson said when asked if he thought he could’ve played at a Division I out of high school. “I wasn’t tall enough. I wasn’t physical enough. I wasn’t skilled enough.”
As Johnson played 26 minutes for the nation’s No. 1 team as they took down Ole Miss in a nearly sold out Bridgestone Arena on Thursday you never would’ve thought that anyone ever got that impression of him.
Johnson was tough, physical and didn’t appear to be letting up for anything or anyone as Auburn found its way past Ole Miss. It wasn’t as if Johnson was suddenly thrust into action, either. He’s a fixture of this Auburn team. All the glue guy cliches apply here, in the best way possible. He’s the guy that all the Auburn players crowd around and ask joke questions during his open locker room session. There’s just something about him that they’ve gravitated towards.
The former UAH forward averages 9.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game while shooting 58.1% from the field. Johnson isn’t Auburn’s go-to guy–or anything near it–but he’s a key element of its success. That’s pretty good for a guy who thought he’d stick at a Division II program for the entirety of his career.
“I honestly never saw myself transferring,” Johnson said. “Around that time the transfer portal wasn’t as big as it is now…When I was at D-II, I was like ‘okay, I could get drafted from D-II.’ That was my goal.”
The goal hasn’t changed since Johnson’s time in Huntsville. Perhaps it’s more attainable now, too. Johnson isn’t an NBA player at this stage, but his teammates aren’t counting him out from being one.
They feel they know him too well to do that.
“He’s just a workhorse,” Auburn center Dylan Cardwell told Southeastern 16. “He’s a dog. I just think he’s very under the radar, but at the right time he’s gonna make it happen.”
“He isn’t gonna be outworked,” Auburn forward Johni Broome added. “He’s gonna come in every day and give it his all and he’s gonna do what it takes to win ball games.”
What Johnson does isn’t just noticeable in Auburn’s locker room, either.
Take a look at the numbers and you’ll come to the same conclusion. Johnson’s total record as a college basketball player is 105-31. Yes, 105-31. A team he’s been on has never had a losing record and has never come within 10 games of having a losing record.
Part of that is the programs that Johnson has surrounded himself with, but part of it is what he does.
“I feel like I’m kind of an all-around player,” Johnson said. “I feel like I do everything decent. I got good touch. I can hit an open 3 ball every now and then. I can dribble the ball decently. I can guard. I feel like I kind of do everything decently.”
Johnson feels as if he’s got more room to go in terms of his skill set, but what he’s doing now is enough. He’s already completed one of the best rises in America.
Now it’s time to see if he can continue his winning ways in the NCAA Tournament.
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