Stanley Johnson is no star, but there's also no denying that he was one of a few bright spots in what turned out to be a wasted season for the Los Angeles Lakers. After signing no less than three 10-day deals with the Lakers between December and January, Johnson was rewarded for his efforts after LA decided to offer him a two-year deal. He has since been a key piece of the rotation for coach Frank Vogel, and the 25-year-old will look to make his mark again for the team next season.
Before moving on to the 2022-23 campaign, however, Johnson had a few things to say about the Lakers' current season. The 6-foot-6 swingman gave his unfiltered view as he got brutally honest about his team's failures this year:
“It’s definitely unfulfilling,” Johnson said, via Matt Peralta of Lakers Nation. “Never in a million years did I imagine, especially when I got signed or just as a fan of the team, that we’d be in this situation. Obviously you make a plan but God laughs at you sometimes, so I think in summertime we should all remember this and if we don’t like it, to do something about it.”
For what it's worth, Johnson did have an idea about what he was signing up for when he joined the squad around Christmas time last year. At that point in the season, the Lakers' problems were already well-documented and it was becoming clear that things just weren't going to work out with this roster. Nevertheless, Johnson had the same hope that most LA supporters had. The majority of Laker nation believed that it was just all part of the process for a new roster and that they'd somehow figure it out eventually. They never did.
For Johnson, it's now all about looking forward. He believes that the Lakers got what they deserved this past year and that they will need to work extremely hard in the offseason if they want to bounce back in 2022-23:
“This summer we have an opportunity to get better at basketball as individuals and lock in as a team,” Johnson said. “If we don’t like it next year then we have an opportunity to do something about it. I think a lot of us are pretty mad about it. We don’t deserve anything, we got what we deserved, but it hurts for it to be our last game. It’s not good.”
Based on what we saw from him last season, it's very much possible that Johnson remains with the Lakers next year. He currently has a player option on his current deal and unless he gets a better offer elsewhere, the former Arizona standout will likely pick up that option which will guarantee him $2.4 million. Then again, with the Lakers facing a complete squad overhaul this season, it also isn't going to be surprising if Johnson ends up playing his basketball elsewhere next season.
“Me personally, I’ve enjoyed every moment I’ve had here, I’ve learned a lot, especially being around all this Hall of Fame talent and a bunch of really good people. I will look forward to being here if they will have me, but for me, I’ve grown a lot even coming from South Bay all the way up,” Johnson said earlier in the season.
Stanley Johnson has played in 47 games for the Lakers this year, starting 26 of them. He has put up respectable averages of 6.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 22.3 minutes per contest. He's not a star by any means, but he definitely brings a lot to the table.