Life and Basketball : Mitchell Johnson gets drafted to NBA D-League
The flourishing art industry in The Bahamas has propelled many singers, rappers, painters, writers and producers into the spotlight. Many may be trying to be the next Mariah, Beyonce, Drake, or Lil Wayne, but what about the next Kobe or the next Rick Fox? Now, some may say, “What does basketball have to do with music or the entertainment business?” Although the areas may seem different, the similarities in these industries abound. Just like being any up and coming artist in The Bahamas, being an aspiring professional basketball player is no walk in the park, there is tons of hard work and dedication involved, lots of pressure, sacrifice and let’s not forget having to deal with the ‘nay sayers’ and ‘haters’; and Mitch Johnson is no stranger to all of this.
To some of you the name and face may be unfamiliar but that is subject to change as this young Bahamian is making waves in the basketball world internationally. The 25-year-old who actually studied architecture and graphic design in college admits that basketball was always a passion for him since the moment his father placed a basketball in his crib. This passion has definitely paid off as his career has begun to flourish upon being drafted into the NBA’s developmental league.
“My first year out of college and I was drafted into the NBDL (NBA Developmental League), which is basically the minor league for the NBA, you get called up to the NBA from that league, there’s only one other Bahamian who’s in there and I was there for a while…and now I’m currently playing professionally in Mexico”, says Mitch with a calm yet confident tone.
It may come as a shock that he is surprisingly humble and refreshingly so. It is no secret that entertainers and professional athletes alike are sometimes known to be or at least perceived to be suffering from the “Kanye Syndrome” (translation: they are arrogant and posses supersized egos) but Mitch is far from that. His quiet confidence is intriguing but he is very much aware of the labels and stereotypes that might be attached to him as he says, “A lot of people would be surprised that I’m down to earth. I’m just a down to earth person; I’m goofy, I’m silly, I play a lot of pranks on people, I’m just a down to earth person. I’m not how I’m perceived to be…and I know how I’m perceived to be.”
He is definitely much more than what he may appear to be. His story goes far beyond a young guy that is good at shooting baskets. He not only overcomes challenges on the court, but does so in life too.
In 2005, he survived a near fatal head on collision, after falling asleep on the wheel, that broke his ribs, legs and every major ligament in his knee and put his career on hold two years. “Doctors told me I’d never play again. I just worked real hard to get back and I finally got back physically to where I needed to be”.
But his share of challenges didn’t end there; in 2009 he was diagnosed with cancer.
“I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which is cancer of the lymph nodes. It’s 4 stages of cancer; I was diagnosed in the 3rd stage which was going into the 4th. I was going into my senior year of college last year, it was supposed to be my best year, basketball wise, everything was supposed to be good and I found out that summer and I just kinda deteriorated physically”.
In the midst of all that hardships and physical pain he was facing, Mitch remained resilient and positive and vowed to beat the cancer. “Even through all that I still had faith. I put up a list on my wall of all the things I was gonna accomplish, I said I was gonna beat cancer before the predicted time because the doctor had said it was curable and they gave me a year and a half to cure it with chemo and they said I wouldn’t be able to play again. I always heard that…that just went through one ear and out the next. I was like alright I’m gonna play anyways.” And that he did.
He accomplished everything he had set to do on that list even though it sometimes meant going to practices after coming from chemotherapy or struggling through his physical weakness and pain during games due to the chemo. His determination brought him through and he beat the cancer. His experience truly confirms the age old saying that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
“A lot of people didn’t know at I was going through, to this day a lot of people don’t know, only my close friends and family because I didn’t wanna have no body feeling bad for me or nothing.”
How was he able to overcome such experiences and even more so at such a very young age? Well, Mitch attributes his ability to make it through tough times in life to his faith in God, family, friends and positivity.
“God,” he says with an unwavering sense of assurance. “Prayers and staying faithful…the only things that kept me motivated…my friends, my family and my mom. Honestly, I was just positive throughout the whole thing. My mom she never really tried to show it, but she was more hurt, she was more emotional about it; my dad– everybody. But if you were around me you’d never know; I was the happiest person. So it was just like an inner peace, staying positive.”
Although Mitch and many other Bahamians have made great strides in the international arena and have done a great job in proving that the level of Bahamian talent is a force to be reckoned with, there are still people who attempt to create roadblocks and discourage. What makes it even sadder is the fact that many of these people are actually people who are his very own; Bahamians.
