Wesley Johnson, “L.A. Definitely Feels like Home.”

Wesley Johnson is a carryover player from last season.  He’s easily one of the best athletes on the team, but focused on defense primarily.  This summer, he worked on a lot of things and spoke about it in an interview with Chris McGee and James Worthy on Time Warner Cable Sports Net.

On working out with Kobe Bryant:

"Mostly I learned is a lot of footwork, the wasted steps, be more efficient, staying consistent with my shot.  Basically it’s about everything mentally, on-and-off the court.  I think that really helped a lot.  As far as the workouts in general it was tough.  He definitely ramped it up as the months went on."

On his role with the Lakers under Coach Scott:

"I did.  I think the main thing is saying; defense. Kobe harped on it  Coach harped on it as well.  I think the offensive thing, they wanted to see more.  They want me to come out there and assert myself a lot more on offense.  I think defense is the main thing they focus on. They said I have all the offensive gifts.  They said start on defense."

On being a lockdown guy:

"Yes, I definitely see that, especially with my length. I think I’m right there. It’ll definitely come with time, it’ll come with repetition, and it’ll come with games. I think I’m there."

On what position he’d like to play:

"Three."

He continued to be speak about how he gained confidence in his game defensively because he defended so many positions last year.  Now that he has worked out against Bryant defensively, and worked on footwork, his confidence is through the roof.

Wesley Johnson had a great off-season and looks to improve on a solid season last year.  If he becomes a more consistent player from mid-range while continuing to play defense at a high level, he’ll be a starter for years to come.