Illinois Basketball Prospect Preview: Morez Johnson Jr.

Late April and early May means the tip off of the grassroots AAU season. As with every spring and summer, Brad Underwood and Illinois are looking for the next members of the Orange and Blue. While he is out looking, Illinois fans can sit back and enjoy the summer of Morez Johnson Jr., who committed to the Illini way back in November of 2021. In today’s recruiting world, seeing a high school sophomore close it down so early is certainly unique. However, the Chicago native’s commitment is rock solid, and 18 months later the Class of 2024 has its cornerstone for Underwood and Co. to add to.

1. The Player

Johnson Jr. is a wrecking ball of a frontcourt player. At the time of his commitment, he was seen as more of a power forward, but as his high school career has progressed, I see him much more as a center at the next level and beyond. 247Sports lists him as 6’8″ and 205 pounds. ESPN has him at 6’9″ 210, which I think is probably closer to his current height and weight. Either way Johnson Jr. combines his powerful frame with good athleticism to hold down the paint on both ends.

The first thing that jumps out for Johnson Jr. is his rebounding. Johnson Jr. doesn’t get bored of banging inside, and he has a ceaseless motor. This ability will get him on the court early in his career in Champaign. He has also shown the ability to push the ball up himself after a defensive rebound. Johnson Jr. has a lot in common with most 16-18 year-old big men in grassroots hoop. He was, and still mostly is, very dominant handed. Johnson Jr. finishes really well with his right hand around the basket on hook shots, layups and even little jumpers and floaters. He prefers to finish strong but has the ability to take contact and finish with good touch going away from the basket. Recently I have seen more usage of his left hand, especially on face up moves, which would be a huge addition to his arsenal offensively.

He played the last AAU season and high school season alongside fellow top 60 center James Brown. It was a bit of an awkward fit, and for their talent level an argument could be made they underachieved. Neither are prolific or confident three-point shooters. However, Johnson Jr. has a mechanically solid jump shot without a hitch or weird release point. He knows he has to improve on that aspect. With another full year of development before arriving on campus he could be even further along in that regard. If nothing else the solid fundamentals will give him a platform to be a good free throw shooter, which will be more important than being able to make threes.

2. The Resume

Johnson Jr. is currently the 58th rated player on 247Sports Class of 2024. According to the St. Rita MaxPreps stats, he averaged 17.2 points and 12.1 rebounds a game in 34 games for the Mustangs. This led the team in both categories, as well as blocks. He shot over 50% from the field, but just 50% from the free throw line. With those numbers Johnson was the only junior on the Chicago News Gazette’s all-state boys’ basketball team. He is also a double double machine for MeanStreets, and has already put up some big-time performances in the early periods of EYBL play.

Johnson Jr. has also been involved with Team USA. They invited him to their summer U17 minicamp. Alongside Brown, Johnson Jr. competed against the best of the best from the US. Now with a more agreeable roster construction in AAU and high school, perhaps Johnson Jr. can add some team accomplishments to his impressive individual ones.

3. The Fit

With the transfer portal it is difficult to project one season ahead, let alone two. Especially with Illinois looking to load up on one year players this year However, with Johnson Jr.’s existing skillset you can see where he can fit on a Big Ten floor no matter who else is out there with him. As mentioned, Johnson Jr. is a tenacious and physical rebounder especially for his age:

You can see in the last clip Johnson Jr.’s comfort on the fast break. He can be a factor in transition as he runs the floor very well. He can either handle the ball usually going right, run the lane and finish above the rim, or clean up a miss:

Of course Johnson Jr. does the majority of his damage offensively in the paint. He has a variety of ways to get in there and operate. St. Rita’s and MeanStreets ran a ton of high lows with one big dumping the ball inside to another. Johnson Jr.’s strength and size makes him such a tough cover, and he stays on balance in the lane very well. I can see Illinois running this with Amani Hansberry as the passer:

Johnson can also operate in the high post, where he is comfortable taking jump shots as well as driving to the basket:

There isn’t a ton of film of how he works as a roll man in the pick and roll. This is due to both playing with another non-shooting big, and also not playing with high level playmaking guards. At Illinois he will need to be able to work in those concepts to maximize himself offensively. He can’t just bully onto his right hand against everyone in college.

Whatever the roster construction, Johnson Jr.’s athleticism and motor make him a fit with just about anyone. In this fluid era of college basketball roster construction, having someone with that profile who is also locked into his commitment is a very valuable asset. While we have to wait another year, Morez will be a big-time player for Illinois.