Derthona, here's Melvin Johnson
Bertram Derthona announces that he has signed athlete Melvin Johnson for the 2017/18 sports season. Native of the Bronx, in the city of New York, Melvin is a 193 cm guard, born in 1993. He comes from Unieuro Pallacanestro Forlì 2.015, the club with which he closed his first season as a professional in Europe, after having played the first months of year in Serie A, with the Varese Basketball shirt.
Johnson is a product of the prestigious VCU (Virginia Commonwealth University), from which he emerged with a degree in criminology and averaging 17.4 points per game, shooting 46% from 2, 38% from 3 and 81% from free throws. After taking part in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas with the Houston Rockets, he signed an agreement with Pallacanestro Varese, with whom he played 9 games in the Fiba Champions League (8 points in 21') and 9 in Serie A (9.4 points in 22'), and then moved to Unieuro Forlì in January 2017, where he played 20 games averaging 19 points in 33' with 52% from 2, 36% from 3 and 80% shooting free. A winger with important offensive skills, during the past season he demonstrated the ability to hit both from distance and when approaching the basket, also bringing 3 rebounds and 3 assists on average in his positive stint in Forlì. Melvin Johnson will wear the black and white jersey number 32.
This is the presentation from Juventus general manager Marco Picchi: “We have observed the American market for a long time, which is always very large and varied, trying to strike at the right time. In recent weeks the name of Melvin Johnson has been at the top of our minds for a long time and, when we perceived that there could be a possibility that the player would accept our offer, we did our best to close the deal. This is a boy with crystal-clear talent, who has already demonstrated his value in his first year in Italy and who is absolutely determined to raise his level to be one of the technical and emotional leaders of this team. I would like to extend a warm welcome to him on behalf of the entire company. Now we are waiting to complete the team with the second foreign player, for whom we are however in no hurry: we are very eager to see the team we have built in recent weeks at work."
So coach Lorenzo Pansa: “We are very happy that Melvin has chosen us as the new stage in his growth journey. In addition to his obvious technical qualities, he is an extremely serious and cheerful boy, ambitious and hard-working. These are important characteristics that integrate perfectly with our reality and our team project.”
These are Melvin Johnson's first words from Leone: “I am very happy to have concluded this agreement and I am very grateful to the Derthona club and its technical staff for having shown great trust in me. I look forward to my second year in Europe with a very strong motivation: after an initial period of adaptation to European life, between Varese and Forlì, I can say that I am ready to give my all on the pitch to become the best player possible. I would like to conquer an important role in this team both from a technical and vocal point of view, trying to convey all my enthusiasm and desire to win to my teammates too. Tortona? I saw the city during the friendly match played at the PalaCamagna last August, and I asked some former players for information: Cosey and Greene spoke very well to me about the management and the fans. The conditions are excellent: I can't wait for the season to start.”
