Trooper Johnson
Personal information
Nationality United States
BornSan Lorenzo, California
Medal record
Summer Paralympics
Wheelchair basketball
Bronze medal – third place1996 Summer ParalympicsWheelchair basketball
Bronze medal – third place2000 Summer ParalympicsWheelchair basketball

Lawrence "Trooper" Johnson is a Hall of Fame wheelchair basketball player, former head coach for the United States women's national wheelchair basketball team, and currently serves as the head coach for both the South African National wheelchair basketball program and the BORP adaptive youth basketball team in the Bay Area. He won a bronze medal with Team USA at the 1996 Summer Paralympics and 2000 Summer Paralympics, and a gold medal during the 1992 Summer Paralympics which was later stripped due to a teammate using banned pain medications. He serves as the logo for the National Wheelchair Basketball Association and was known throughout his career as the Michael Jordan of wheelchair basketball due to his in-game dominance and obsessive attitude towards success both on and off the court.

He served as the captain of the Bay Area Road Warriors, a professional wheelchair basketball team based out of Oakland, for most of his adult life, where he led his team to numerous championships. During this time, he also played for the US national team and the Russian national team, which also led to frequent championships and global recognition. He has worked as the program coordinator and head coach for the Bay Area nonprofit, BORP, for nearly 20 years where he coaches both sled hockey and wheelchair basketball. He has made it his mission to use sports as a way to promote learning and self-sustainability for kids within the Bay Area disabled community.

Early life

Trooper was born into the military family of Lina and Lawrence Johnson in Joliet, IL. He grew up in military base camps, constantly traveling throughout both the US and Europe, before his family settled down in New Mexico. Throughout this time, Trooper found the love of sport. At the age of 17, Trooper crashed his car into a tree in a drunk driving incident but remained relatively unscathed. His paralyzation happened once he attempted to dislodge his car from the tree, causing it to pin him underneath the car and drag him down the hill before resting and holding him under until medical aid arrived.[1] About a year after the crash, Johnson began playing wheelchair basketball, but stopped to continue his education until 1989.[2] He attended a community college program for laser technologies during this time, getting his associates, and then moved to San Jose, CA, and to begin the start of his wheelchair basketball career.

Career

Playing career

In 1989, Johnson joined the Golden State 76ers, now called the Golden State Road Warriors, a men's wheelchair basketball team.[3] From 1990 until 2004, Johnson competed with the United States men's national wheelchair basketball team at various international competitions.[4] With the team, he won a bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Paralympics by scoring eight points in a 66–60 win over Spain.[5] The next year, Johnson was named the 1997 National Wheelchair Basketball Association's (NWBA) Most Valuable Player after averaging 29 points per game.[6] He also led the Golden State Road Warriors to their first Final Four in 1997 and was named MVP in 1998 at the first wheelchair basketball game played during the NBA Jam at the NBA All-Star Game. That same year, he became the second paraplegic to climb El Capitan.[7]

He would later take home another bronze medal from the 2000 Summer Paralympics.[4] Johnson was appointed captain of the Golden State Warriors team for 24 years, where he set the record for the most three-point field goals in a game.[8] His shooting and play making ability has been compared to that of Michael Jordan.[9]

Coaching career

Johnson was appointed an assistant coach for the 2013 U.S. Men's U23 and U.S. Women's U21 at the Junior ParaPan American Games. He was later promoted to assistant coach of the United States women's national wheelchair basketball team from 2013 until 2016.[10] In March 2016, he was inducted into the NWBA Hall of Fame.[7]

The next year, Johnson was promoted to head coach of the United States women's national wheelchair basketball team from 2017 until 2020.[10] While serving as coach, Johnson also sat on the board of directors for the Northern California Olympians and Paralympians, as the Sports Program Coordinator for the Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program, and head coach of the Junior Road Warriors Wheelchair Basketball Team.[11]

In December 2021, Johnson resigned as head coach of the women's national team after current and former players alleged emotional misconduct.[12][13] He said he would cooperate with a United States Center for SafeSport investigation, and believed there would not be any findings.[12][13]

References

  1. ↑ Ronald J. Berger; Melvin Juette (March 28, 2008). Wheelchair Warrior: Gangs, Disability, and Basketball. Temple University Press. p. 114. ISBN 9781592134762. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  2. ↑ "Players search for lost gold". Port Arthur News. Texas. April 19, 1995.Free access icon
  3. ↑ Lee, Maddie (July 21, 2016). "4-time Paralympian Trooper Johnson back for more". sfgate.com. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  4. 1 2 "US women's wheelchair basketball announce new coaches". paralympic.org. January 12, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  5. ↑ "U.S. Wheelchair Team Wins Bronze". Janesville Gazette. Wisconsin. August 25, 1996.Free access icon
  6. ↑ "Rolling thunder: Wheelchair Basketball celebrates 50 years". Walla Walla Union Bulletin. Washington. September 28, 1997.Free access icon
  7. 1 2 "Iconic Trooper Johnson Headlines 2016 NWBA Hall of Fame Class". nwba.org. March 31, 2016. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  8. ↑ "Trooper Johnson". nwba.org. August 2, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  9. ↑ "Wheels". Corbin Times Tribune. Kentucky. September 25, 2004. p. 3.Free access icon
  10. 1 2 "NWBA Hall of Famer and Four-time U.S. Paralympian Trooper Johnson Named 2017-2020 U.S. Women's National Team Head Coach". nwba.org. January 11, 2017. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  11. ↑ "Trooper Johnson is named 2019 U.S. Women's National & U25 Teams Head Coach". nwba.org. December 22, 2018. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  12. 1 2 "Inside The Athlete Uprising That Brought Down A Wheelchair Hoops Legend". Defector. February 24, 2022.
  13. 1 2 Azzi, Alex (December 10, 2021). "U.S. wheelchair basketball coach resigns after players allege emotional misconduct". NBC Sports.
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