Larry Johnson Biography
Larry Johnson an American retired basketball player who played National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Charlotte Hornets and New York Knicks. He officially listed height of 6’7″ tall, he played at the power forward position.
He played a successful college career into a professional one. A leader for then-national champion the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, Johnson became a top pick of the 1991 NBA Draft. He as well wasted no time shining for the Hornets, before being traded to New York, where he lead the Knicks to the playoffs.
Larry Johnson Age
Johnson was born on 14 March 1969, in Tyler, Texas, United States of America.
Larry Johnson Draft, NBA
Johnson got selected first overall in the 1991 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Hornets after a historic run as part of the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels.
He as well played in the league from 1991 until 2001 splitting his time between Charlotte and the New York Knicks. Over the course of his career, he made millions in salary and product endorsements. Forward for Charlotte Hornets (1991-1996) and New York Knicks (1996-2001).
Larry Johnson Back Injury
ohnson was forced to retire early due to chronic back problems and currently helps the Knicks with player development.
Larry Johnson Unlv
Larry joined the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) to play under head coach Jerry Tarkanian. Alongside future NBA players Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony, He faced the Duke Blue Devils in the title game of the 1990 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament.
UNLV went on to win the contest by a score of 103–73, with Larry contributing 22 points and 11 rebounds. The Runnin’ Rebels set simultaneous NCAA records for the largest margin of victory and highest score in an NCAA Tournament championship game.
In a post-season mired by charges of recruiting violations and misconduct by UNLV, an agreement was reached between the university and the NCAA to allow for the defense of their title for the 1990–91 season, which would be followed by a suspension from post-season play the following season.
Larry and the Runnin’ Rebels responded with a perfect regular-season record of 27–0, with an average scoring margin of 26.7 points per game; this total included a 112–105 victory over the Arkansas Razorbacks, ranked second in the country at the time.
In the 1991 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament, UNLV won the West Regional Tournament only to be upset by eventual champion Duke in the Final Four. Larry was named a First Team All-American twice and won the Big West Conference Player of the Year and tournament Most Valuable Player awards in 1990 and 1991.
He also won the prestigious John R. Wooden Award and was named Naismith College Player of the Year in 1991. To this day, Larry is ranked 12th in career scoring and 7th in rebounding at UNLV despite playing only two seasons. He also holds the record for single-season and career field goal percentage. In 2002, Johnson and teammates Augmon and Anthony were inducted into the UNLV Athletic Hall of Fame along with the 1990–91 UNLV men’s basketball team.
Larry Johnson Hornets
Larry was selected first overall in the 1991 NBA draft by the Charlotte Hornets and won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in his first season. He also competed in the 1992 Slam Dunk Contest at the NBA All-Star Weekend in Orlando, finishing second to Cedric Ceballos of the Phoenix Suns.
In 1993, Larry was voted to start in that year’s All-Star Game, making him the first Hornet in franchise history to receive that honor; he enjoyed his best statistical season with averages of 22.1 points per game and 10.5 rebounds per game in 82 games, which earned him All-NBA Second Team honors.
Along with Alonzo Mourning, Muggsy Bogues, and Dell Curry, Larry played with the Hornets at the height of their popularity in the early to mid-1990s. During this time, Larry, who went by his initialism “LJ” and the nickname “Grandmama” (because of a popular series of commercials for Converse, who signed him to an endorsement contract following his entry into the NBA), was featured on the cover of the premiere issue of SLAM.
In October 1993, he signed what was at the time the most lucrative contract in NBA history, a 12-year, $84 million deal with the Hornets. However, he missed 31 games after spraining his back on December 27, 1993, in a game against the Detroit Pistons. During the summer he played for the U.S. national team (nicknamed Dream Team II) in the 1994 FIBA World Championship, winning the gold medal.
Larry had entered the league as an explosive power forward, averaging over 20 points and 10 rebounds per game. However, after the injury to his back, he was forced to develop an all-around game with an improved outside shot. In the 1994–95 season, he made 81 three-pointers, nearly 60 more than in his first three years combined, and was selected to the 1995 NBA All-Star Game.
Friction between Larry and Mourning forced the organization to make a change, and the resulting moves made by the Hornets left both players on other teams. Prior to the 1995–96 season, Mourning was traded to the Miami Heat for Glen Rice and Matt Geiger. Following that season Larry was dealt with the New York Knicks for Anthony Mason and Brad Lohaus.
Larry Johnson Knicks
Larry averaged 12.8 points, a career-low, in his first season as a Knick, and although he would never return to his former All-Star form, he was a key member of the Knicks’ 1999 Eastern Conference championship team.
During Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, he was involved in a critical play in which he was fouled by Antonio Davis of the Indiana Pacers. Standing outside the three-point line with 11.9 seconds left, Larry held the ball and then began to dribble. He leaned into defender Davis before jumping up.
The referee called the foul about a half-second before he released the ball, but it was counted as a continuation shooting foul. Larry made the shot and converted the free throw following the basket for a four-point play, which turned out to be the winning margin in a 92-91 Knicks victory.
During the 1999 NBA Finals, he characterized the Knicks as a band of “rebellious slaves.” Bill Walton later called him and his performance a “disgrace.” When he was asked about the play of San Antonio Spurs point guard Avery Johnson in Game 4, Larry again shifted the topic to slavery: “Ave, man, we’re from the same plantation. You tell Bill Walton that. We from Massa Johnson’s plantation.
He went on to say, “Here’s the NBA, full of blacks, great opportunities, they made beautiful strides. But what’s the sense of that … when I go back to my neighborhood and see the same thing? I’m the only one who came out of my neighborhood. Everybody ended up dead, in jail, on drugs, selling drugs.
So I’m supposed to be honored and happy or whatever by my success. Yes, I am. But I can’t deny the fact of what has happened to us over years and years and years and we’re still at the bottom of the totem pole.”
On October 10, 2001, Johnson announced his early retirement from basketball due to chronic back problems that had plagued him for several years, after his point production had decreased for three straight years.
Larry Johnson Now
Johnson got to be hired as New York Knicks basketball and business operations representative on April 8, 2012. He goes to every basketball games and he does public relations.
Larry Johnson Net Worth
Johnson has an estimated net worth of $10 million.
Larry Johnson Height and Weight
Johnson stands tall at a height of 6 feet 6 inches and weighs of 250 lbs or 113 kg.
Larry Johnson Family
Johnson information about her family is publicly unavailable. This section will be updated once this information is available.
Larry Johnson Wife
Larry married Celestine Wingfield on 27 August 1994. The pair have three children together named: Larry Demetric Jr, Lance Johnson, and Lasani Johnson.
Larry Johnson Grandmama
Johnson was part of Converse’s memorable “Grandmama” ad campaign in the early ’90s, but he recently said that was not the initial commercial pitch made to him by the shoe company.
Heappeared on MSG Network’s “Four Courses with J.B. Smoove” and said the only reason he signed with Converse after being the No. 1 pick in the ’91 NBA Draft was that the company “had this great idea for a commercial.” Johnson: ”