Rodney Johns

Rodney Glenn Johns Sr. (October 13, 1964 – December 5, 1995) was an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Scottsdale CC Fighting Artichokes, South Mountain CC Cougars and Grand Canyon Antelopes. Johns led the Antelopes to the NAIA men's basketball championship in 1988 and was selected as the most valuable player of the tournament.

Johns was selected in the third round of the 1988 NBA draft by his hometown Phoenix Suns but did not make the team. He played professionally in New Zealand for one season and then returned to Grand Canyon where he became an assistant coach for the Antelopes from 1990 to 1993. Johns desired a career in coaching but was unable to find another position. On December 5, 1995, he drove his car at a high speed into a wall in Phoenix, Arizona, killing himself and his sister, Deborah Peters, who was a passenger.

Early life Johns was born in Phoenix, Arizona, and raised in the Matthew Henson housing project. He lived with his mother, Mary Conerly, and two brothers. He spent the 1982–83 season at Scottsdale Community College; he decided to transfer because he grew tired of making the commute from his home in Phoenix to the campus in Scottsdale. He enrolled at South Mountain Community College. Johns scored 41 points in the championship game to defeat the Auburn Montgomery Warhawks 88–86, including the winning basket when he hit a jump shot with two seconds remaining in overtime.

Johns graduated with a degree in criminal justice.

Professional career Johns was selected in the third round of the 1988 NBA draft by the Phoenix Suns. after he performed well during pre-camp workouts and was considered as a strong candidate to make the team. Johns struggled during four preseason games with the Suns where he scored 12 points but committed 15 turnovers.

The Suns sent Johns to New Zealand, He also played in semiprofessional leagues. Johns served in the position until 1993, when he chose to leave on his own accord. Near the housing project where he was raised, police claimed that Johns ran a stop sign and drove into a concrete retaining wall at over .

Johns' son, Tamarcus, was a high school basketball prospect who experienced legal troubles and academic difficulties while dealing with the suicide of his father.