Johnson becoming a hot commodity

JuJuan Johnson, the 6-foot-10, 190-pound center/power forward from Franklin Central High School in Indianapolis, Ind., has seen his recruitment takeoff as of late. The No. 61 ranked player in the class of 2007 is receiving interest from a large number of high-major basketball programs.

"JuJuan is being recruited by a lot of schools right now," said Franklin Central head coach Mark James. "Kentucky, Notre Dame, Michigan, Purdue, Xavier, Connecticut, USC, Missouri, Butler and Indiana State are just some of the schools that have been by the school or plan to come by to watch JuJuan play.

"I know that JuJuan has been offered scholarships by Purdue, Missouri and Xavier," he added. "He has also taken unofficial visits to each of the in-state schools. He has also been to Xavier and is going back this week to watch them play."

According to Coach James, Johnson is not going to make any decisions about his future until the summer AAU circuit is over. While three programs have already offered the four-star prospect, most schools are waiting to see how Johnson develops and progress as a player.

"JuJuan is not going to make any decisions until he plays through the summer," said James. "Nike invited him to the big event that they hold here in Indianapolis last year, but I didn't think that he was ready for that. JuJuan will definitely participate in the Nike event this year.

"Most schools don't know where JuJuan is going to be as a player right now," he added. "He has a 7-foot-0 wingspan and has a great deal of upside, but the biggest problem right now is that he only weighs 195-pounds. Some of the bigger schools recruiting JuJuan believe that he has the ability play the small forward position in college."

There is no doubt that Johnson is doing everything possible to become a complete player. Johnson has been solid throughout the first 11 games of his junior year.

"We are 7-4 right now and JuJuan is having a pretty good year for us," said James. "He is averaging 14.5-points, eight rebounds and five blocks per game. He is also shooting 61 percent from the field. We have already faced Greg Oden twice this year, so JuJuan is playing against some great competition."