Garrett Johnson believes he could have been one of the Atlantic 10’s best players this past season.
In the 2023-24 season, the versatile guard-forward spent the first year of his GW basketball career averaging 13.4 points per game on 42.8 percent shooting from the field and an impressive 40.3 percent from 3-point territory. But during the first drill of the second day of summer practice ahead of the 2024-25 season, Johnson said he “felt a shock through his body” as he extended his leg driving toward the basket.
“I knew it was serious right away because there was a lot of pain, something I’ve never felt before,” Johnson said.
A week later, an MRI confirmed his fears: He had torn his ACL, which would force him to miss the entire upcoming season. The news was devastating for the rising star, who was poised to build on his promising debut season.
“It crushed me when I found out,” Johnson said. “I think I was probably in shock for a couple weeks, not really processing the fact that I was going to miss another season.”
The recovery process of surgery and physical therapy presented a long road ahead for Johnson, but time away from basketball was not new for him. Initially enrolled at Princeton University in 2021, a battle with a benign hip tumor forced him to sit out from what would have been his first two years of collegiate basketball. He underwent nine rounds of chemotherapy and multiple surgeries over the span of two years until he was healthy enough to play the 2023-24 season.
He transferred to GW in April 2023, opting for a change of scenery after the negative memories of his time undergoing treatment while at Princeton, he told USA Today in November 2023.
In his first game playing for GW in November 2023, he came out firing on all cylinders, leading the team in scoring with 21 points as GW walloped Stonehill College 89-44. He said returning to the court was a powerful experience.
“There were times I didn’t think I’d be playing basketball again,” Johnson said postgame. “I went through a lot in two-and-a-half years.”
Johnson proved to be a critical piece of the puzzle as the team jumped out to a 14-3 record. His 3-point prowess established him as one of the preeminent deep threats in the conference, if not the country.
But as the team was in the thick of what would become a 12-game losing streak in February 2024, he began dealing with hip pain that limited his ability to play and eventually forced him to the sidelines for the team’s final nine games. They finished the season 15-17, struggling to sustain their momentum without Johnson.
Johnson said he returned to chemotherapy treatments while he was out in 2024 “to try to kill” what remains of the tumor as much as possible. He said he was able to return to practice after ending his chemotherapy treatment last summer but has since returned following his ACL tear.
Johnson said “it was really tough” initially to deal with the impact of his ACL tear. He said he was unable to come into the Smith Center for team practices because it was difficult for him to watch, and he could not put any weight on his leg for six weeks, resulting in him spending a lot of time lying in bed. Additionally, he said undergoing chemotherapy while doing his ACL rehab was a “hurdle,” forcing him to need more rest and take time away.
“I don’t know if anyone’s really done an ACL rehab on chemo,” Johnson said.
But he kept pushing, sticking to his recovery plan and hitting the benchmarks that were needed for his recovery.
“Obviously the emotions are going to be there, but I wanted to get back and play again,” Johnson said. “I didn’t want it to be the end. I knew I just had to do the rehab and get back.”
He said after the 2024-25 season started, time helped him heal and he was able to return to the Smith Center, where he took on a role of boosting his teammates’ confidence by giving them positive feedback, particularly around their shooting. He said sophomore guard Trey Autry, one of his best friends, was someone he would help out when in a shooting slump.
“If he would have a game where he might be missing a couple in a row, I was just there to remind him in timeouts that he was an amazing shooter and he just needs to keep shooting the ball and things will work out,” Johnson said.
As the team embarked on what would unfold into their best season in nearly a decade, finishing 21-13 and making a postseason appearance in the College Basketball Crown, Johnson said “it was great” to see the success of his squad, even though he wasn’t able to play.
Despite the success in the win-loss column, the Revs missed Johnson’s play. The team struggled in 3-point shooting, Johnson’s forte, finishing 12th in the conference with a 31.2 percent clip beyond the arc. Heading into next season, Johnson said the team has the potential to win the A-10 and secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
After a March 1 win over La Salle, Head Coach Chris Caputo said the team performed well this past season, even without Johnson, who was “probably” their “best player.”
“I’d like to go take every team in the league and take their best player off the team, and say to themselves, ‘Okay, how would they be? How would they do?'” Caputo said postgame. “And then I would say to myself, ‘Yeah, we had a pretty good year.’ I mean, that’s really what it was.”
Now, almost a year removed from his ACL tear, Johnson said he is “a month or two” out from his doctors fully clearing him and giving him the green light for contact and competition. Ahead of his potential clearance, Johnson said he feels “good” and has been working out.
After being away from the game since June, he said he still has the same goals heading into next season, including improving on his first year, becoming a more “complete” player and helping the team win games.
“Obviously I missed a lot of time, and that put a chip on my shoulder, enough for those three years that I missed,” Johnson said. “But the goals stay the same for me. I want to play the game at the highest level, and I don’t see any reason why I still can’t do that.”
He said “being tested” and going through his health struggles made him realize that he is stronger than he had thought.
“If you just have a goal, no matter what happens to you, if you keep showing up and putting in the work, good things will happen eventually,” Johnson said.
