The 2021-22 LA Clippers season has been a fun one for fans. They've seen their team scratch and claw their way to victories that most other teams likely wouldn't have been able to. One of the interesting things coming into training camp, at least for me, was seeing former Clippers forward Wesley Johnson with the team.
Wesley Johnson, 34, was drafted fourth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2010 NBA Draft and played nine seasons in the NBA. He last played in the NBA with the Washington Wizards during the 2018-19 season, but never officially retired from the league.
Johnson joined the Clippers coaching staff in what appeared to be one of the more discreet coaching moves of the summer. He spent five years in Los Angeles, two with the Lakers and three with the Clippers. I've seen quite a few people surprised to see Wesley Johnson pregame as well as on the sidelines, and some fans have even asked me about him and his role with the team.
As the Clippers gear up for the postseason, ClutchPoints caught up with Wesley Johnson, who opened up on getting into coaching with Los Angeles, life as a player, what the future holds for him, and much more.
Tomer Azarly: First off, I do have to ask this: Since you've joined the Clippers coach staff, have you officially retired from the NBA?
Wesley Johnson: Ha, yeah, I don’t… That’s kinda like a tricky question. I would say no, I haven’t, but I know I wanted to start a new chapter so it’s like one of those things like I haven’t officially said it. There’s plenty of options. I know I wanted to get into coaching.
What made you want to get into coaching?
Wesley Johnson: I wanted be in the front office for sure. That’s my main goal is to be in this, but you know, I’ll always definitely be a player at heart. I always will be but I think my role with the Clips is allowing me to really see everything.
How did you make the transition from a player to a coach?
Wesley Johnson: You know, the pandemic probably helped me. I was reaching out to everybody and I was in a program — like a coaching program — which was great, honestly. It helped me do the analytical side, see what those guys were doing as far as the behind-the-scene stuff. They gave us a little homework to do, but it was difficult in the sense that we were doing everything from Zoom. And we couldn’t do it like hands-on or everything, but when I got connected with them, they put me in contact on a job opening. An opening came up with the Raptors 905 (the Toronto Raptors G-League affiliate) and went out there and I was starting to help those guys out. I did Summer League with them, but was still talking to a lot of people. Then I landed with the Clippers.
Was it easier because of your prior relationship with President Lawrence Frank and members of the Clippers organization? Did that play a factor?
Wesley Johnson: Yeah, I was reaching out to him, keeping in contact with him. Also keeping in contact with a lot of people that was on the staff before that probably moved on, and then people on the staff now talking to them, telling them I was interested in it, so it kinda helped out. Really just communicating and really talking to people cuz I don’t think anybody really knew I had a drive or a passion to jump into that on the other side, but I always did. I think the last couple years of my career, especially with the Clippers and overseas too, I was leaning towards it just because guys were asking me a lot of questions. Coaches were asking me what I saw, my take on the game. At first, I was shying away from it, not paying attention to it, but I started paying attention to it as the years started progressing.
So you mentioned the front office interest but what is the ultimate goal for you personally? Is it to be a head coach in the NBA? A front office member?
Wesley Johnson: Honestly, yeah I don’t have a cap on it, you know? I’m going where I’m just trying to learn both sides as much as I can. I definitely wanna be a general manager, definitely wanna be up top running and sitting at the table, conducting things in those meetings.
I don’t have like [one thing]. I’m just going with it. I still can relate to the players when I’m on the floor talking to them. I’ve been in those locker rooms, I’ve been on the court, I’ve seen the terminology, where to be at, the X’s and O's, all of the different things that goes on as a player in those games, so I’m able to relate to them. Really just wherever the wind blows right now, I’m not opposed to anything.
What's the biggest difference, or similarities, in your approach to work as a player versus as a coach?
Wesley Johnson: It’s similar. It’s similar, but it’s still different. You know, you gotta work on your body and all that stuff as a player, and get ready for the game, but it’s still the X’s and O’s, and knowing where to be at as far as on the player side. The coaching side is really breaking that film down and knowing which way we want to send guys and how we’re gonna attack players and blitzing and the play calling, what they’ll fun effective, how the lineup changes when players come in, so it’s like breakdown, its more in depth, it’s more detailed but as a player’s side, it’s more on the fly. You gotta start picking it up and the communication side of it being on the floor, it’s huge so if you got players that are very vocal, it helps out for the coaching side because you’re able to tell them this is such and such play, and then the player can voice it out to the players. It goes hand-in-hand.
So it’s like the detail that goes into coaching, like you’re watching game film on the team, the lineups changes that come in, player tendencies and everything that goes into that and then plays they like to run in the fourth quarter, the quick hitters they like to run, what’s their go-to plays, what do they like to do, are they a running team, a half-court team, just breaking everything down. And as a player it’s like you wanna give us, in the sense when I was a player, you wanna give them the information like this play call is this and then having them understand this is what they like to run. As a player, it’s different cuz you’re workin on your body, getting your shots up, making sure your body and everything is ready for the game, to play, and to perform. As a coach, you wanna give them all the information like to study and have them well prepared to go out and enhance what they’ve been working on, their craft, their body, their speed, whatever, so when we go out on the court, they’re well prepared. It goes hand-in-hand. So it’s cool because talking to all the coaches, being on that side, and then picking brains and talking about rotations and what defenses work against what teams and seeing all those minds work, and in the same instinct, you’re on the floor with all these great athletes and y’all all working together and then you’re seeing everybody’s talents play a part in the game so it’s cool.
As a player you don't want to be overloaded, but as a coach, you want to make sure they know all. How do you balance that knowing that you've been on both sides?
Wesley Johnson: You don’t wanna overdo it, especially watching film, you wanna show them three or four clips. Say you wanna watch a defensive breakdown, we talk about no middle, I would show somebody good clips of what they're doing right, but then tell them like you did mess up on letting somebody go middle. Like as a player, you know when you messed up, you know what I mean? So I would just show them what they did right, but you did let somebody go middle two or three times in the game, third quarter possibly show them, tell them to close out different or you missed a rebound here, this is what we’re talking about, they’re a big defensive rebounding team or offensive rebounding team, we needed you to crack back, you missed a couple. Like but you’ve been doing it good. So you wanna give them positive reinforcement, so just like three or four clips.
Do you get assigned a certain group of guys or the young or you get the whole team?
Wesley Johnson: Me, I bounce around. I mean, I help out with everybody and then just like, I’m just absorbing the lay of the land, I worked with Marcus, I was working with Serge before he left us, just talking to them, asking them what they saw, different stuff that I see and yeah. I talk to everybody. I bounce around so if guys are working out, I jump in the drill like talking defense, I’ll ask them what they’re seeing during the games, or during practice, how was the game? Just try to get a feel and continue to keep their spirits up if they’re down just to be that reinforcement, like I know how the season goes, so just definitely wanna keep everybody upbeat.
How do you think this Clippers team has looked so far?
Wesley Johnson: Shit, great. I mean, if you would’ve told anybody that you didn’t have Kawhi Leonard, Paul George like we did, Marcus Morris the beginning of the year, Nicolas Batum the beginning of the year, and to be where we are right now. Shit, the season’s going great. You gotta tip your hat to Ty and everybody but the players, in the sense of how hard they play and winning games that we weren’t supposed to win, but we gave ourselves a chance so I would say the season is going great for us right now.
What do you think makes coach Tyronn Lue so unique because he seems to connect with players on a different level than other coaches?
Wesley Johnson: He was a player. He’s been in the locker room and just his personality. He sees everything and he’s able to connect because he’s real, he’s honest, he’s easy to talk to, but I think for him, he’s got a great great feel of everything as far as how the players are, the temperaments of players, and he calls everybody out that needs to be called out but he gives everybody praise when they need it and when they do right. For that, I think everybody respects that and everybody knows that like, in a battle, he has your back. He’s riding with you. This being my first year and being a part and seeing him in action, he’s been phenomenal. I cant even say it’s been good. His adjustments during the game, mid-game adjustments, he’s very open to whoever sees what, but when he sees something he’s right on it and we adjust and the players absorb it.
Do you think there's room to include Ty in the Coach of the Year discussion?
Wesley Johnson: He should be. He definitely should be in the discussion for sure. What he’s been doing and the hand that he’s been dealt, but like you said, he’s definitely humble. He takes fault about everything, he’s like it’s my fault, I should’ve did this better, I should’ve did that. He never points the finger, it’s always at himself. He always takes the bullets for everybody which is great. I mean, cuz as the leader of the team, he definitely handles that well.
How do you keep guys focused? All the injuries, that has to wear on guys, right?
Wesley Johnson: It should, but on the flip side, it’s a hell of an opporuntity. Seeing those guys out, it’s a hell of an opportunity for the young guys, hell of an opportunity for jut the team in itself just to get a chemistry and get a flow going and build that bond with those guys being out cuz when those guys come back, you know what they’re gonna being, who they are. They’re gonna get their shots, they’re gonna demand the ball or whatever, but when they’re not in the game, we’ve been playing without them, so we know we’re capable of playing a brand of basketball without them.
What do you have for us on Kawhi Leonard and Paul George? (Interview was conducted shortly before George's return to the lineup)
Wesley Johnson: I think they're taking it day by day. Kawhi, don’t know. Paul, it’s just a tricky situation with him, but as far as that, we’re just telling them to take their time. Come back when you come back cuz right now we’re rolling and we’re having a good year.
I know he's only been here briefly, but what has Norman Powell been like to work with?
Wesley Johnson: It’s been great. I mean Norm is a pro. Just seeing him evolving over the years, going in I think he was on that Toronto team, it helped him winning a championship and then seeing him become the player he is right now, it’s cool to see. Him being able to shoot the ball, being able to drive, defend. I mean he fits right in with the mold of the player that we want.
I want to take you back just a few years. You were part of the Lob City Clippers for a few years. Why do you think that team was so successful in the regular season but not in the playoffs?
Wesley Johnson: Injuries, one. I think injuries was a main thing with that. I think teams start clicking at the right times. Everybody always says its takes luck when you get into the playoffs, I mean you see teams just start hitting a difference switch. Everything is going in, they’re making all the right plays, it’s like teams click at the right time. That team we had, it was injuries. Blake going down, CP going down, yeah it was just across the board and it was a big blow to take, especially from those star players out in those moment.
Chris Paul, JJ Redick, Jamal Crawford have all kinda expressed that egos played a part in you guys' downfall. Would you agree with that?
Wesley Johnson: Yeah, I mean, it wasn’t a secret. I think we got in our own way a lot, which was frustrating, but we always had a chance. We had our chances, but it was definitely frustrating, but like they said, everybody knows we got in our own way. That’s the only way to put it. We got in our own way.
How much has the organization changed since you were a player?
Wesley Johnson: Oh, a lot. A lot. You seen the CP, JJ, DJ, and all those players there and there coming here now, it’s been very lax because I would say it was star-studded. Even though you have Kawhi, of course you have PG, but across the board, having the JJ’s, and DJ, Jamal, just run off the names on the team. But here, you still have great players, but it wasn’t as big of an ‘ahh’ factor with those type of names on the team.
Which city or team did you like playing with the most?
Wesley Johnson: I would say they all have a place and it’s different reasons why. I would say the Clippers, but Lakers for sure because of Kobe. It’s hard to say because all of them, it was different for me for every year. I feel like I grew every year as a person outside of just playing as a player. I would say the Clippers because I was there the longest and I was there with them.
What was it like playing with Kobe Bryant?
Wesley Johnson: Yeah, I have a couple, but it’s been around him. It’s being around Kobe, especially in the summertime, working out with him, seeing the preparation it took to get back from his Achilles injury and the different injuries that he had and it’s how hard he went and how serious he took every day. It was great to see. And then him as a person, my daughter was born on his birthday, they share the same birthday, and when she was born, he sent a big care package to the hospital for her, showing how caring he was and everything. It was cool just to be able to share the floor with him and then this different stuff when we practiced, and then pick-up, working out, all that. Those moments I’ll always remember.
Did the perception of Kobe Bryant change once you joined him?
Wesley Johnson: The perception of Kobe how?
Just how he was perceived before you joined him and what you thought after joining him.
Wesley Johnson: Are you talking about him being an asshole?
*Laughs* well, yeah.
Wesley Johnson: That didn’t change. That was it. He was that. He called you out, he talked shit, it wasn’t no secret. He let his presence be known. If you couldn’t take it, like, you definitely got called out and it was no secret. That didn’t change. It was actually cool because if you didn’t back down, he’s respected that. He didn’t want nobody that was on his team that was afraid of him, even though everybody knew he was an alpha, but if you couldn’t handle it, it’s like why are you over here?
Were you on the team where Kobe Bryant was outraged and went off on all of you guys?
Wesley Johnson: Yeah, I had sprained my ankle, so I was actually getting treatment so I’m hearing him barking, I’m hearing him going crazy, so I’m like what’s going on. Vitti was like, ‘oh my god, Kobe’s going at it again,’ so I go out, and mind you, he hasn’t been at practice, he hasn’t been there so he just shows up at practice, we were going through practice, and he’s like, nah, check up. We’re playing fives. We scrimmaging. So I go out there, and he’s going at, yelling at Jeremy, yelling at Nick, and then Nick started talking back to him, and then he just went off on everybody. And I’m walking out and seeing he’s leaving out the gym pissed. So as he’s leaving, the reporters came in at the time that they were playing, so they got a glimpse of what he was saying and everything, which that never really happened. We hooped, they come in afterwards, but they came during this time, so got a glimpse of everything.
That shit was funny. He went in. He came in and was… yeah. Fadeaways, shimmy, he was giving everybody everything.
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