Arkansas' Kamani Johnson -- Dakari's brother -- has family relationship with Kentucky

Dakari Johnson had a solid two-year career at Kentucky, averaging a combined 5.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in 15.2 minutes per game from 2013-15. A former top-10 recruit out of high school, the 7-foot, 255-pound center made it to two Final Fours — including one national title game — in his time in Lexington.

He had the individual and team success, helping the Wildcats on their unforgettable postseason run in 2014 before anchoring the second platoon during the team’s historic 2014-15 season. That led to a draft selection in 2015, a brief stint in the NBA, and currently, a successful pro career overseas.

Now, it’s his little brother’s turn.

Kamani Johnson, a 6-foot-7, 230-pound forward, is entering his senior season of college basketball. He started at Arkansas-Little Rock, where he played two years and earned Third Team All-Sun Belt honors as a sophomore. Going into year three, he entered the transfer portal and signed with the Arkansas Razorbacks before sitting out the 2020-21 season due to NCAA transfer rules. He followed it up by playing in 26 games as a redshirt junior, averaging 6.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

Now, he’s expected to take over a primary role in the frontcourt for Eric Musselman and the Arkansas program. Johnson averaged 9.3 points and 9.5 rebounds per contest in the team’s four-game exhibition tour in Europe this summer, bringing physicality and toughness to the Razorback frontcourt — just like his brother did in Lexington several years back.

“The one thing about Kamani is what anybody that’s an Arkansas Razorback basketball fan has seen from Kamani, that’s exactly what you see in practice behind closed doors,” Musselman said of Johnson at SEC Media Day in Birmingham. “He is physical. You know, he does like to mix it up underneath the rim. He is an excellent offensive rebounder. He provides toughness.”

It’s a mindset and style of play he learned from his brother during his time at Kentucky. A middle schooler at the time, the youngest Johnson was around the program throughout his older brother’s two-year stint in Lexington, getting to know the players and staff — all family, in his eyes.

“The Kentucky program, that’s like family,” Johnson told KSR on Thursday. “All the coaches — even the coaches that coached him (before) — and the players that he played with, I look at them as big brothers. I mean, I remember being in middle school and going to the games at Rupp (Arena). Man, it was great being a part of that. You know, obviously, my brother is BBN forever.”

Watching his brother’s career and the success he found at Kentucky pushed Johnson to reach similar heights in his own basketball journey. After starting at Little Rock, he’s now at a top-tier program in the SEC in Arkansas, making a run to the Elite Eight in his first year on the floor in Fayetteville.

“Having him and watching all of that is set in my mind, what I want to do and all of the things I want to accomplish,” Johnson told KSR. “Like them going to two Final Fours, I’m like, ‘I have to experience this for myself.’ That’s one of the things that really motivates me.”

Seven years after his brother’s departure from Kentucky, Johnson is now on the enemy bench. The Wildcats and Razorbacks are conference rivals, both real contenders for the SEC regular season and tournament crowns. This year in particular, the two teams will face off twice in conference play for the first time in nearly a decade, once at Rupp Arena and once at Bud Walton Arena.

“I voted against that, too, by the way,” Kentucky head coach John Calipari joked at SEC Media Day.

Johnson played Kentucky last season in Fayetteville, a 75-73 win for the Razorbacks. Now, the senior forward is set to make his return to Rupp Arena for the first time since he was in the stands cheering on his older brother as a kid.

“I haven’t played in Rupp (Arena) yet, so this year getting to play at Rupp, I’m super excited about that,” Johnson told KSR. “When we played Kentucky last year, legit all my friends from Kentucky were hitting my phone and I was able to talk trash to them because we beat them last year. I got to talk trash and have the upper hand in that, so it’s kind of cool. It’s super fun for me.”

Part of the excitement? Battling Kentucky’s superstar center, Oscar Tshiebwe, in the post. Two physical players with high motors, Johnson is ready for the challenge of taking on college basketball’s reigning National Player of the Year.

“He had a great season last year. I mean, the numbers he would put up and the things he was able to do, it was pretty impressive,” Johnson told KSR. “Even going against him, me and Jaylin (Williams) realized how strong he was and stuff like that. He had a great season. It was kind of surprising to see him come back, but I know why he’s coming back. He’s coming back so he can try to gain more team success than he did last year. And that was one of the main reasons I came back too, so it’s going to be fun matching up with him this year. We’re looking forward to it.”

After all, that’s what college basketball is all about, those head-to-head battles.

“It’s fun to me. I like it,” he said. “He’s a physical player and I’m a physical player, so I like matchups like that. That’s why you play basketball, for matchups like that.”

Johnson’s return to Rupp Arena is set to take place on Feb. 7 at 9 p.m. ET. Then, the Wildcats will head to Fayetteville to take on the Razorbacks to close out the regular season on March 4 at 2 p.m. ET.