An inside look into the UC Davis basketball team
By Krista Hajjar — sports@theaggie.org
As the basketball season is approaching, the UC Davis men’s basketball team has started solidifying their roster. One of the strongest players on the team in the 2024 season has decided to stay for another year, despite entering the transfer portal last spring. The California Aggie recently had a chance to sit down with TY Johnson, a fourth-year communications major, to ask him about what he learned from his last season at UC Davis, what he’s looking forward to in the upcoming season and why he put his name in the transfer portal.
In the position of lead guard, Johnson believes he had to achieve a greater understanding of the game in order to advance his team.
“I learned a lot from being in that role, because I had to come in and produce more for our team,” Johnson said. “I knew that I had to give in and to buy in more of the system for us to be where we want to be and to put us into the position where we were at last year.”
Johnson continued to note that it took a mixture of intense film watching and consistently working with the men’s basketball coaches to make that huge stride between his first and second year as an Aggie. Although he is reaching great heights now, Johnson said the journey to becoming a lead guard wasn’t easy with the new pressure that came along with it.
“In all honesty, I started the season off really rocky,” Johnson said. “I was putting too much pressure on myself.”
But, that rocky start didn’t deter Johnson from playing his best as he continues to stay true to himself on the court and break records. His goals for this season include winning Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and securing first place in the conference. His ambitions go past that of the Big West League as Johnson continues to note his bigger ambitions of being on the All-American stage.
“I know my expectations, and I know my coaches’ expectations and what it takes to get there,” Johnson said.
After discussing the off-season and how the team has been using this past summer to strengthen their defense — what makes the team special and unique — Johnson also commented on the team as a whole.
“I feel like our team bonding, the things that we do off the court with our coaches and how much time that we spend with each other makes us unique,” Johnson said. “Schools normally don’t do that, because I feel like a lot of college coaches are just happy to do their jobs. […] Our coaches actually invest into us as humans before basketball players. They really want to get that […] brotherly connection within [the] whole team.”
Johnson reflected on a specific moment in his career from his fourth year of high school that stays with him. Due to COVID-19, he had a shortened year and season — yet that was when he and his past team had their best season.
Even with less time competing on the field, his team was able to take part in the Chipotle Clash of Champions with the top eight schools in Illinois. Johnson and his team were first up against the No. 1 team, with his team the underdogs at No. 7. They proved everyone wrong as they not only beat the No. 1 team but went on to win the entire tournament.
“[My team] played on ESPN, which was the first time our high school was featured on there,” Johnson said. “I knew that was my [breakthrough] and I was going to take off.”
The Chipotle Clash of Champions isn’t the only fond memory that Johnson keeps with him — a saying from his dad has also remained important in his life. Before every game, Johnson’s dad always tells him, “A lot of people will fall under pressure when the lights are bright.”
Johnson admitted that he didn’t really understand what his dad meant until recent years.
“People tend to fall under pressure in the biggest moments, but I’m never one to shy away from it,” Johnson said.
Earlier this year, Johnson placed a transfer portal request, informing his coaches of his willingness to transfer schools and play for another team.
“There was a lot that went into it,” Johnson said. “With me coming off a great year and season, I knew that I could play with anyone in this country […] I love being tested and playing against the best.”
After speaking with Head Coach Jim Les, Johnson said that he wanted to explore his options and see where he stood. If Johnson were to leave UC Davis, he would need the school to match what he was receiving: being lead guard, playing 30 minutes a night and having a similar team culture and coaching staff.
Johnson ultimately made the decision in early summer to stay with the Aggies. After speaking to coaches at other schools, he failed to find a similar connection with the coaches, as well as other drawbacks, that ultimately led him to stay at UC Davis for his fourth year.
“It was a tough decision, but it really wasn’t,” Johnson said. “After talking to these coaches and stating what I was looking for, I was able to make a pros and cons list which made it easy for me to come back and make my last year my best year at Davis.”
By Krista Hajjar — sports@theaggie.org
