Dana Altman and the Oregon men’s basketball secured one of the highest rated-prospects in the program’s history on Tuesday, landing a verbal commitment from Dior Johnson, the No. 1 PG in the 2022 recruiting class according to the 247Sports Composite. 

Verbally committing to Oregon, Johnson passed up scholarships from Alabama, Washington and Kentucky as well as an invitation to play in the NBA G League. 

Johnson originally committed to Syracuse in February, 2020, but changed paths in November, 2020, decommitting from the Orange. 

Johnson is currently playing prep basketball at Centennial high school in Corona, CA. He is ranked as the third-best player in the country by 247Sports and as the seventh-best player by 247Sports Composite rankings. Both ranking systems have Johnson as the top point guard in the 2022 class. 

The 6-foot-3 guard is a flashy ball handler with excellent passing skills. While not an extremely explosive above-the-rim finisher, Johnson is an elite finisher for his size. An improving three-point shooter with defensive potential, Johnson is more than likely a one-and-done player with NBA first-round potential.

Johnson has a player rating of .9974 via the composite rankings, making him the second-highest-rated prospect to commit to Oregon. Bol Bol is the only Oregon recruit with a better rating at .9989 in 2018.

Johnson was looked at by many as a prospect that would go straight to the G League to play pro basketball for his upcoming senior year. Taking the college route, Johnson will be viewed as one of the best players in college basketball, regardless of class. 

It’s still possible Johnson will elect to go pro as there have been reports that the NBL in Australia is offering around 1.2 million for Johnson to play a year there before going to the NBA. 

Assuming Will Richardson moves on to the next level after the 2021 season, Johnson will likely get the opportunity to start at lead guard for Altman in 2022.