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Team Wall is focused on going 4-0 in Indianapolis. / adidas
USA TODAY High School Sports has been given access inside the making of the new AAU program started by Washington Wizards star John Wall. Here is the next installment.
One of Jalen Johnson’s most redeeming qualities on the hardwood is his ability to, not think, but know what he’s about to do.
At 6-foot-7, Johnson’s self-assured in his ability to get to the rim at-will, knock down perimeter jump shots or erase opposing player’s shots in the lane.
“It’s just the mindset I play with,” said Johnson, a junior wing with Team Wall, the new AAU team started by Washington Wizards All-Star point guard John Wall. “I don’t feel like there’s anything I can’t do when I’m out there.”
Still, when he and Team Wall finished 3-1 after the first session of the adidas Gauntlet in Dallas April 10-12, Johnson couldn’t hold back his No. 1 redeeming quality off the court – realism.
“I was shocked; I won’t lie to you,” Johnson said. “I mean it’s hard enough in AAU because you have guys from all over who have never played together, but we’re a brand new team and I was the last one to join so we didn’t have a lot of time to practice and build chemistry. For us to go 3-1 was big, but I think it made us hungrier.”
Johnson and Team Wall will feed their insatiable appetites this weekend in Indianapolis when session two of the adidas Gauntlet kicks off Friday.
“I was pleasantly surprised,” said Team Wall coach/director Kendrick Williams. “From a talent standpoint, we’re as good as or better than most teams, but it takes so much more than that to be successful. That’s what we’ve been instilling into these guys from day one. It’s refreshing to see them buy-in so quickly.”
Jalen Harris knew that role acceptance would be paramount if Team Wall was going to fulfill its goal of not only qualifying for the Gauntlet Finale but, ultimately, taking home the hardware.
“I could tell at practice how we kept playing better and better together that it would carryover,” said Harris, a point guard who averaged 12 points and 5.3 assists per game in Dallas. “The thing for us now is to take our games to the next level. We can’t play the way we did in Dallas. That won’t work.”
Admit it, you’re slightly baffled.
Conventional wisdom says a team that only lost one game, largely because of one bad half, should maintain its level of play to repeat past success.
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Jalen Johnson is focused on leading Team Wall to the Gauntlet title. / adidas
“Not on the Gauntlet,” Williams said matter-of-factly. “These are some of the best players in the country and some of the best teams in the country and they will absolutely raise their level of play. My guys know they’ll have to forget Dallas and focus on playing better in Indianapolis.”
Harris said “that’s the only way” Team Wall will attain its goal of finishing 4-0 for the weekend.
“We can’t be satisfied with what we did last time,” said Harris, a junior. “We want the highest seed possible.”
The Gauntlet Finale runs from July 8-10 in Atlanta and consists of 16 teams – the top eight ranked teams from the two adidas Gauntlet sessions and eight play-in teams.
“There’s a whole different mindset you’ve gotta have when you’re chasing titles,” Williams said. “And, make no mistake about it, we’re chasing titles. We’ve got championship pedigree on this team.”
Johnson won the state title as a sophomore at Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, N.C.) and fell in the state title game this past season. Harris won the National Prep title with Word of God Christian Academy (Raleigh, N.C.) in March.
“It’s not enough for me to get there, I want to win it all,” said Johnson, who averaged 13.3 points and 6.3 rebounds a game in Dallas. “Part of the reason I came to this team was so I could work on my leadership so this is what I’ve wanted. We all want to get exposure and pickup interest from colleges, but the best way to do that is to win. That’s all we’re focused on.”
Follow Jason Jordan on Twitter: @JayJayUSATODAY