Every path to the NBA isn’t built the same. Some players lean on raw talent. Others have to grind for every opportunity.
Brooklyn Nets two-way forward Chaney Johnson fits firmly in the latter group. Call it grit if you must. It would be a good description.
Growing up in Alabaster, Alabama, a tough town south of Birmingham, nothing was handed to Johnson. After graduating from Thompson High School there in 2021, he had no offers from major programs. Instead, he committed to Division II Alabama/Huntsville.
For some players, missing out on the Division I level can be discouraging. For Johnson, it only provided more fuel for his fire. Despite not landing at one of the nation’s top programs, he remained locked in on the next opportunity.
“I was on to the next thing the whole time,” Johnson told NetsDaily in an exclusive conversation last week. “I need to try to get somewhere out of high school. Okay? Nah, I’m gonna go D2. Okay? I need to keep on working so I can get somewhere after D2. I’m at Auburn, I need to keep on working so I can get somewhere out of Auburn.”
Just a few years after receiving zero D1 offers out of high school, Johnson is in the NBA with the Nets on a two-way contract, tappi ng off his first season with a double double Sunday night: 16 points, 13 rebounds.
Looking back on his journey to the league, Johnson credits his “Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” above all else.
“One, all glory to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and Jesus, without him, I would be nothing,” said Johnson. “I always fall back on him, just giving me the strength to continue to go.”
One of the biggest turning points in Johnson’s career came at Auburn. After earning Gulf South Player of the Year honors in 2023 and being named a two-time first-team All-Gulf South selection (2022, 2023) at UAH, Johnson transferred to Auburn.
While he remained focused on the next opportunity, he wasn’t particularly looking to leave UAH.
“He didn’t want to leave,” his longtime trainer, confidant, and primary representative, Kelley Hall, told ND. “I kind of felt like I was twisting his arm, like, ‘Yo man, I’ve got these schools reaching out—you need to go in the portal.’”
After visiting Auburn, though, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl didn’t let him leave the building, and the 23-year-old had decided that it was the place where he wanted to play the final years of his NCAA career.
He ultimately played an integral role in the Tigers’ Final Four run during the 2025 NCAA tournament, averaging 8.3 points and 6.5 rebounds across four tournament games while providing much-needed production off the bench.
From the moment he arrived, Johnson brought with him his most valuable asset: a relentless work ethic.
He was a guy who, as soon as he got to Auburn, was immediately our hardest worker, “Auburn basketball head coach Steve Pearl, who was an assistant on the staff during Johnson’s time with the program, told ND. ”He was immediately a guy that you just had to almost kick out of the gym and just worked his tail off nonstop.“
Although he went undrafted in last June’s NBA draft, Johnson remained determined to reach the league. Subsequently, he signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Summer League. Though he didn’t make the team’s 15-man roster, Johnson began the season with the team’s G League affiliate, the Cleveland Charge.
“He absolutely galvanized the locker room,” Charge head coach Eli Kell-Abrams told us. “He’s just on at all times, a joy to be around. He’ll run through a wall for you. Nobody played harder than Chaney. There was no better teammate.”
After 16 games with the Charge, including an impressive performance at the G League’s Winter Showcase in front of NBA executives, the Nets signed Johnson to their third two-way deal on Dec. 26.
At first, all of Johnson’s opportunities came in the G League with the Long Island Nets. Long Island has established itself as one of the league’s top development programs, with four players earning NBA call-ups this season, tied for the fourth-most in the G League. Johnson believes multiple aspects of his game grew under head coach Mfon Udofia and his staff on LI.
“I feel like all aspects of my game kind of grew,” he said. “I feel like Coach Mfon really let me play free… so I got to really get better at attacking more closeouts.”
Mfon Udofia, the development-oriented head coach of Long Island, said that he saw the biggest growth in Johson’s confidence.
“The biggest thing is building confidence in him,” said Udofia. “Sometimes players don’t know how good they are. So our job is to instill that confidence. He’s an extremely hard worker and does everything both our Long Island staff and Brooklyn staff ask of him.”
Fast forward to the present, and Johnson has appeared in 17 NBA games with the Brooklyn Nets, including one start. A potential 3-and-D player, he’s improved in a number of areas, his shooting and playmaking on offense and attacking closeouts on defense.
He finished his Brooklyn experience averaging 8.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.1 assists while shooting 54.3% from the field in 17 games. Small sample for sure, but among the Nets eight rookies — the Flatbush 5, Malachi Smith, Grant Nelson and Johnson — his scoring numbers were higher than all of them except Egor Demin, Danny Wolf and Nolan Traore. The 23-year-old has also showcased his versatility, logging minutes across multiple positions, including at center, despite being undersized at 6’8”. (He does have a 6’11” wingspan.)
He takes pride in his ability to hold his own. Call it Brooklyn Grit or high character, what the Nets say they value.
“I take pride in that matchup,” said Johnson. “Even though I’m smaller, I don’t ever want to get punked by nobody. I don’t ever want to feel like I can’t hold my own against anybody. It’s testing my strength, my mentality… and showing me I can get stronger and really give those guys problems.”
He also credited Day’Ron Sharpe and Nic Claxton for helping him adjust to that role, “They help me all the time,” he said.
Johnson believes he has the tools to carve out a highly productive NBA career, and so remains determined to improve every aspect of his game.
“I feel like I’m a pretty solid defender, and my frame is pretty NBA-ready. I have the tools. But honestly, every aspect of my game needs to get better,” he said. “I need to be a better shooter, more confident with my ball handling, and smarter at reading sets. I feel like I could be good at a lot of things.”
Still, he aspires to be not just an NBA player, but a very good one. That confidence Udofia talked about seems to have taken root.
“I want to be one of the better players in the NBA,” Johnson said of his career aspirations. “All-Defensive First Team or Second Team and possibly have an NBA championship, I want to be one of the greatest players to ever touch the ball.”
His future remains uncertain. He will become a free agent in June. His two-way deal will be over. The Nets have a lot of young players, particularly wings plus three draft picks in June, one a high lottery pick. There’s been no indication whether the Nets will sign him to a new deal, invite him to Summer League or training camp, but that’s fine with Johnson. He’s accomplished a lot already.
