Keshad Johnson interview: “My impact to the team is my heart” | Five on the Floor

Keshad Johnson interview: “My impact to the team is my heart” | Five on the Floor

welcome in latest episode of five on the floor in the five reason Sports Network thanks for joining us on your favorite podcast app on Android recommend Spotify on the five Reon YouTube channel on Apple Apple podcast also check out off the floor that’s our Discord server $2.99 per month 10 different channels communicate with Heat fans make suggestions for episodes with us we do q&as all kinds of stuff get off of Twitter again $2.99 C per month off the floor link is right here in the description also check out the great sponsors of the five reasons Sports Network this episode is sponsored by Valene this is a great program that we got you for the summer valine instant oil oil change with oil changes complete in about 15 minutes maintaining your vehicle is just a quick stop on the way to your summer destinations click the link in our bio to receive a coupon that saves eight bucks off Valene full service conventional oil change or $10 off Full Service full synthetic or diesel oil change 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here’s today’s floor plan I’m Ethan scholnick you can follow me Ethan J scolnick in five Reon Sports I got Alex too you can follow at Tropical blanket and I got Brady Hawk you can follow him at Brady Hawk 305 so a lot of people are excited about this guy recent Edition the Miami Heat who’s been showing out in summer league we’re going to talk about the the nickname which is appropriate to that as we go forward here um but first I want to make sure I’m doing this correctly because I do always do this wrong it is Kad Johnson is that correct correct correct all right we’re ending the podcast here because that’s the first time I’ve actually done that right but we’re going to make you do something okay your friend that you went to college with who you’re now playing with in the summer league who was the second round pick of the Miami Heat could you pronounce his name for us P LaRon all right that’s that’s what Michael told us right isn’t that isn’t that correct all right and then all right and then the first round pick last name where we need a first name pronunciation BW oh my God okay you can be the broadcaster you’re going to replace Eric Reed so we got Johnson here and before we go forward kind of on his path to heat and what his role may be going forward I want to ask you about the nickname because I know it’s part of your social media handles did you give yourself the nickname Showtime or did somebody else give it to you n um I got the nickname from a couple of my friends in high school you know we had a little a little friend group everybody was giving nicknames um then they just called me Showtime you know just based off my god-given talent and my outgoing personality and everything it it stuck it stuck it had a good ring to it so I kept it well we’ve noticed that the heat social media has been using you a lot lately um that’s usually a sign that somebody’s goingon to play a role on the team they seem to know uh but they also have used you uh in in sort of you speaking to teammates being very public not public but I mean just being very vocal uh in terms of your communication with with teammates on the floor and and which obviously is you know plays into doing the right things on offense and defense have you always been like that on all the teams you played for yeah um I always been like that in life you know just trying to be a servant to others you know any any which way I could um on the court that’s that’s just my my habitat you know and I always want to see my teammates win so whatever I could do to help them win and be successful you know whether it’s mentally or or physically out there on the game I’m I’m going try to help him and give my this I want to go back to the draft um I can tell you that our group and especially Greg sander who’s not here right now had like zeroed in on you as a guy that the heat were going to take most likely in the second round did you anticipate that you were going to be taken at some point in the draft and did you anticipate that it might be the heat that you ended up with um I for sure did for sure did for sure anticipated uh that I was going to be drafted you know there was no doubt in my mind that I was going to be drafted I did 16 workouts and one one team out of 16 teams going to have to like me but um it’s just adding adding to my story you know adding to adding fuel to the fire and everything um being able to choose with the with the two-way contract Miami he was just the just the most perfect option the best option for me and everything like that so um of course I want to be drafted and everything but uh I’m a big believer in Christ and I believe everything happened for a reason so I just want to motivate people you know aside from the the way that politics work and everything and then just earn my spot earn that spot on the team kot uh so a lot of us here like we specifically mentioned you and uh your teammate at Arizona as far as being like guys who you know the heat would Target and we talked about that on podcast before you know the second round of the draft and now both of you guys are here what is it like and I’m sure you’ve been asked this question already before but what is it like to be able to now be here with him after spending you know the last season together at Arizona just how has it been so far um we just adding on to our journey together you know um being at Arizona you can see we both feed off each other you know we both we both Pro provide that spark you know he take charges and and I’m I’m I’m getting stops you know whatever the case may be we showed that throughout the whole year uh the whole last year when we played and everything that we not backing down to to nobody you know we both Fighters and you can just see that you can just see that for me to just have that comfortability knowing that somebody going to run through a wall for me I’m I’m more than willing to run through the wall back for him you know and to just keep adding on to our Legacy just being teammates and our and our Brotherhood it’s it’s everything I could ask for if if if it’s anybody that was to take that that pick I seen the work that Pella put in me him practiced worked out with each other every day at Arizona so that’ll be the only person I want to take that spot you mentioned the 16 teams you worked out with and obviously one of them was Miami um I’m just wondering how did you felt like that workout went after the fact and did you kind of have an idea like you said about about Miami was kind of one of the options on the two-way contract but did you feel like you put on a show at that specific workout and you feel like they they kind of uh had a liking to you um I feel like they had a liking to me like humbly speaking I just feel like the energy that I bring like I feel like Pat Riley and ER Expos to picked up on the energy that I BR you know the the effort I played with and everything we had a overall a good group in that in that group we even had Isaiah Stevens in there you know me and Isaiah Stevens we was on the same team a lot throughout the workout and like just the energy that me and him both BR just by playing the game of basketball you know you can see the chip on both our shoulders you know and everything so I feel like Pat Riley and Eric sper they they they like Geniuses when it comes to just like who they want and and like the guys that they’re picking like I’m I’m sure they went back and really took their time and and like okay I like those guys we I want to see more of those guys so I feel like I did a good job of doing that regardless of me scoring the ball putting putting the ball in the basket and everything like that I feel like I show my other intangibles I want to um go a little further on that with you because I think fans like to be taken behind the curtain and like what these workouts are like so just describe it because you mentioned Pat you mentioned SPO I’m guessing maybe Adam Simon was there I don’t know about Andy B others uh but the heat Brain Trust they tend to all participate in this and they come to a decision together so just take take us through it from kind of beginning to end was it that was that the heat facility like how does it start what what kind of drills do they put you through and how do you try to show up because as a guy who it seems like we’ll get to this more as the podcast goes on who can kind of plug a lot of holes for a team and and do a lot of different things to help you win how do you make that pop in a workout like that m um there’s no there’s no real right answer to to answer that question on how do you make that pop you just got to do whatever it takes in that specific moment so the workout pretty much went like you know stretch you do like little shooting shooting drill that’s charted and everything like that then you compete you compete you play one onone to the two on tws um we had it was five group five people in that group so it was kind of like OD number so we we only got the two on two usually you get to three on three but like we was playing two on twos and everything and just throughout the whole workout you know it’s very tiring you got you got to be on rep at the rep but you got to stick you got to stick to it and for me I just try to stick to it you know I know it’s a job interview you know um you don’t got a time you don’t got no time to be tired or fatigued or anything like that you got to stick with it you gotta gotta play you know you gotta hoop you gotta show however you however much you can you know um and me got to try to hit shots and everything but even if the shots not falling I know Eric sper and Pat Riley they the years they they know basketball they know somebody just not shooting shooting good in the day they know how they not just gonna judge you just off that one day I don’t I don’t feel like but I’m sure they judge people off the The Eternal feeling that they get from them you know and I feel like um myself and Isaiah Stevens like just both of us provided that you know along with the other guys that was in in a workout too so kashad uh I’ve noticed that on some of your post game interviews You’ mentioned a couple of times that you don’t try to go outside of the box too much and I I know sometimes like players look down on that like you know uh the idea of trying to get you know people throwing them into a box and like limiting what they can do so I found it really interesting that that was your perspective on it in the sense that like um you know you mentioned that you just want to help the team win and do whatever is necessary when you look at that you know from that lens what are the things you bring most because we’ve already seen like a lot of it right we’ve seen The Cutting we’ve seen the transition uh attack that you provide of course like the the lob threats and then the fact that you um you know you became a better you had your best shooting season at Arizona um you know while also upping the volume so I think a lot of people are very encouraged by the skill set you bring the way that you can kind of just fit alongside many lineups um you know on the heat in theory and just I kind of wanted to get you know your perspective on how you feel you know as far as what you bring to the table immediately for the heat um I ultimately just bring effort like ultimately effort um aside from skills like I don’t just like my impact to a team is not my skill set I feel like my impact to the team is is my heart the heart that I bring the energy um all the miscellaneous things you know just the um the things that don’t show up in a in a scoreboard or just show up on on just like okay he’s that type of skill set person like you know I feel like my skill set is rare you know but I feel like I perfected me being a energy guy me getting rebounds defensive stops and things things of that nature so um in terms of just skill set I I I I like to say that’s like the that’s the flashy side I’m not I’m not no flashy guy I just want to I’m a hard hard-nosed grinder you know gritty person that just like to get to the Grind so I feel like that’s what I bring to the table to the team as you talk about that grind there was a there was a play in yesterday’s Summer League game it was like late in the third quarter where you basically switch on to like four different guys in the whole possession ends up like a shot clock violation um I’m just going to like what what are you looking at or reading defensively and like what what do you feel like you like how would you find your description as a Defender like are you kind of a uh they’ve had different guys over the years but like a one through five like obviously playing next to Bam like how do you kind of see yourself at this next level defensively because you continue to show it in summer league uh so humbly speaking I I see myself anywhere on the defensive end you know just trying to get the job done um whether it’s U guarding the one in the five you know I see myself anywhere whatever the coach try to need done I’m going try my best to get it done you know and I feel like I got the heart to do it feel like def it’s no real technique on how to be a good Defender you know you just gotta get the job done you know whatever it takes whether it’s sliding your feet or whether it’s it’s turning your hips and getting into a Sprint you know that you got just do it it do it a taste to get the job done a lot of times uh these scouting reports come out on players and the player doesn’t have a chance uh to really respond to them until they can do it on the court right like until they get into a certain situation and say I could be more than you thought I was or I I have a certain skill that you didn’t think I had I just want to read you something this was actually published in B Sports Illustrated so I want to give them the correct credit and they actually is a pretty in-depth scouting report that they did on you uh it might have been late last season with Arizona or prior to the draft I I just want to get your thoughts on it as I go forward and some of the comps that were made in here so it’s a it’s a long scouting report but then it gets to a conclusion excuse me so I’ll just start there um the strength for archetype popular popularized by Adam spinella who’s actually someone we’ve had on the podcast who does a lot of draft evaluation uh consists of players like PJ Tucker Robert Covington Grant Williams Jay Crowder and Dorian finny Smith um by the way two of those have played for the Heat and played big roles uh for the Heat and feels like they’ve been in on the other three over the years all of these players are stronger defensive first fours with size that are excellent on ball Defenders smart off ball Defenders have some level of catch and shoot impact in the NBA and have high rooll acceptance while not the flashiest archetype that’s 6’7 215 a developing catch and shoot three strong on ball defense and helpful off ball defense Johnson has a high likelihood of meeting the same archetype that is seen fairly consistently on Championship level teams do you feel that would be a fair description of kind of what you’re bringing to the table here um I would say that’s that’s very much fair you know each one of those guys as you can see um on the film they they affect winning in some type of way you know and I I feel like I do affect winning in those situations but um I just want to be the best kead version of kead Johnson you know I feel like I’m very very athletic you know along the lines you know I feel like my my athleticism is my god-given talent you know I feel like that kind of go um go a little under the radar how how much uh work I put in to just just being athletic being able to jump and fly and everything like that um and and make like spectacular plays in in a sense but um over the course of years yeah those guys made wonderful wonderful impacts to winning programs you know um they been able to take advantage of all the opportunities so I feel like that’s a good that’s a good mode you know just just knowing knowing yourself knowing who you are I feel like each one of those guys know their role and um of course coming into the NBA I will have to know my role um so I don’t I don’t see that as as a bad comparison at all I mean you mentioned the athleticism I mean you did what were you tied for the highest vert um basically was it 42 inches I believe I saw does that surprise people do you think because again you you do kind of portray yourself as like a you know plug in the gaps type of player and then like you’re soaring Above the Rim yeah um I have got a couple of times like I know you had bounce but I didn’t know you it was like that until I seen a person I heard that a couple times times and everything like that but I just want to uh just keep keep being able to put on the show you know basketball it’s a game at the end of the day it’s a game and it it got to be some type of fun to some type of little uh little little Razo Dazzle and everything like that so I I just try to try to take advantage of all my opportunities every time I get a chance and everything but um yeah just try to show my god-given talent I’m gonna let these guys jump in here in a second I just got one more here and because you mentioned again uh Miami being the perfect situation and we’ve seen over the years what they’ve done with undrafted guys with the right undrafted guys um I mean you go all the way back this has been a long I mean we just saw Anthony Carter’s son get drafted in the top 10 I mean literally he was Anthony Carter was one of the Heats undrafted guys I mean this goes back so far but in recent years I mean whether it’s Duncan Robinson you know becoming an elite shooter in the NBA or Max stru a kind of following Duncan and then getting paid in Cleveland Gabe Vincent uh Caleb Martin who we just you know saw his situation play out and then and then obviously hey with heith who they’ve resigned I mean there’s a long line of these guys when you were discussing this with your agent is this one of these things it’s like okay get me there because it’s a good fit but also they know what they’re doing with with guys like me who bring particular skill sets absolutely absolutely um you you pretty much said it yourself me and my agent like my agent he wouldn’t be my agent if he didn’t know me so um I feel like he knew me um he’s familiar with just the the the Heat and how they make the right decisions out of the the like for for the right reasons and everything like that so um I’m a he believe I’m a he culture God I I believe I’m a he culture God but um just to really get specific with it like he see me as more than just a basketball player too like um not not just him himself but I also see myself as more than just a basketball player just um trying to have an impact into any any culture that I have Community you know um youan we done a great job around the community of Miami so um um just trying to trying trying to just have a impact you know uh if I could mimic that or learn from him um just by giving back you know pay paying it forward um aside from basketball and to do that in a in a in a community like Miami that’ be all I hope for you know I feel like that’s my that’s my calling to to just do things outside of basketball as well as be um effective on the court within the organization so another thing I wanted to ask you right like we’ve already been talking about your leaping ability and you know that’s going to be really exciting for Heat fans because it’s something that’s kind of been missing from the team since I don’t know maybe like drik Jones Jr like five seasons ago just having somebody who can jump out of the building like that and really get the crowd going um also the heat really like very much need the help in transition so I think people are going to appreciate what you bring there but is other than like the leaping ability and the way your athleticism shows off there something else I’ve been really intrigued with when watching you play you know we talk about filling in the gaps but one of the gaps that like a lot of people simply can’t do that you can with your athleticism it very much feels like a functional thing where it’s like you’re getting these deflections you know like the other day I think you you you deflected one that like off the inbounder and you were guarding the inbounder and it it was very much like I’ve seen you deflect that I’ve seen them I mean you deflect like normal passes basic passes that you know anybody thinks you know can go through it’s not a bad pass like you get your hands on a lot right and I think and a lot of times it’s unorthodox because people don’t really see it coming like you have the combination of length athleticism and strength and I think that kind of throws people off and it it very much feels like kind of like a secret weapon here how much have the heat talked to you about that part like the defensive playmaking part of your athleticism and you know um you know how much are you looking to bring as far as that part of your game um you know uh the heat says says a lot about it um but it’s it’s nothing I have already been told but um being here with the Heat organization around um coach Dan and other guys on the staff like I know like me coming into the NBA I I gotta be good at something you know I’m not gonna come in and be the um go-to guy on the offensive end um and I know that I know that of course but I gotta try to find some way to be a winner some way to be a winner so um me I got to already perfect what I’m already good at you know I feel like I’m already good at just making players like that happen um getting a lot of deflection and things of that nature so just try to prev try to perfect what I’m good at being being the best person I can be in anywhere anywh I need to all right I’m gonna let Brady Clos this up I know you got to get uh somewhere uh keot appreciate oh my God look at that we got a Jay Rich side in the back that’s another guy that had an impact on winning you know uh Josh he do whatever Tes you know so just being around this uh this heat culture you know it’s a lot of guys that’s been overlooked but they prove that they here and they got that grit you know um Josh coming around I’m I’m G learn from him as as my time coming around I’m G learn from all these guys I’ll close you is there any other guys the that’s everybody everybody it’s this real brotherhood around here so um everybody there’s no egos going around we all down to earth um I could go to anyone these guys that that got major contracts and everything and they’re all accessible so I’m going try to use all my resources and get learn get as much knowledge from him as possible all right well we appreciate it um actually we should have dragged Josh on here to talk about the Argentina Columbia match because I know his head’s probably in in in soccer right now or FIFA or DJing or something but obviously we’ve enjoyed covering him over the years and and we will definitely enjoy covering you I’ll just close with this one have you have you got to talk to Bam at any point he seems a little busy these days but um has has he communicated with you or any of the other summer league guys no I hav I haven’t got the chance to uh to talk to talk to Bam but I heard a lot of good things about um bam along with the other guys that’s uh part of this uh organization so like I said we they they all seem down to earth and you know I’m I’m like I’m like a sponge so I’m G just try to soak it all in all right well don’t let the other guy charge you 20 bucks for coffee that’s all we’re gonna say all right Kean Johnson we we we appreciate it I know people are really excited uh to see more from you and and obviously catch up with you when you get back to Miami or actually the Bahamas uh before Miami uh before the season starts thanks a lot for doing this appreciate that

Keshad Johnson looks like another undrafted find for the Miami Heat. Johnson spoke with Ethan Skolnick, Brady Hawk and Alex Toledo about his workout with the team, how he sees his role and more.

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