Of the four transfers on this year's Auburn team, K.D. Johnson is the only one who made the move within the conference. He played his freshman year at Georgia.
This season, with the Tigers, Johnson is second on the team in scoring with 13.3 points per game, and he leads the team and is second in the SEC with 44 steals. He's also become beloved by the fans because of the toughness he shows and the emotion he plays with.
Favorite movie? Ride Along
Favorite food? Pasta
Pre-game music? Slimelife Shawty, Young Thug, Gunna
Favorite video game? Call of Duty, Madden and Fortnite
Q: Do you have any nicknames?
Johnson: K.D. Some people call me Biscuit. That's my childhood name.
Q: What is something people don't know about you?
Johnson: I'm a very big football guy. I love football probably as much as I love basketball.
Q: Who's your team in the NFL?
Johnson: My team is the (Tampa Bay) Bucs. I really do like the (Atlanta) Falcons. I'm sticking with the Falcons. But I like the Bucs. I love Tom Brady.
Q: When did you start playing basketball?
Johnson: I didn't take it seriously until probably sixth grade. I didn't play on an organized team until eighth grade because I was still playing football then.
Q: Do you remember the first time you dunked?
Johnson: I had my first dunk in ninth grade. It was in a varsity game. I probably started that game, and it was a game we were blowing them out. I always could almost dunk, but I just tried it that game and it went in.
Q: After playing at Georgia last year, what made you transfer to Auburn?
Johnson: Just the people. BP (Bruce Pearl), his coaching staff, how everything is organized and how he treats his players. Nobody in the country trains and prepares how we prepare. It's just different, and I love it.
Q: What stood out about the campus and community when you visited?
Johnson: I wasn't really focused on the campus. I just came here to win games. I loved the basketball part of it. When I got here, though, seeing the fans and everybody's love, just the culture here – football, too, before we even started – just the love here, I love it.
Q: What has it been like playing in front of fans again at Auburn Arena?
Johnson: At Georgia, it was COVID so I really didn't play in front of a college crowd. This is really my first college crowd, so it's crazy. I love it. I just love home games now. I really don't like playing teams at their place. I want to see our fans almost every game.
Q: You love playing to the crowd. Have you always shown emotion like that?
Johnson: I've always been like that. It doesn't matter if it's a small gym, big gym, I'm always screaming. It's just emotion. I love basketball a lot. It just comes from there.
Q: Are you like that off the court too?
Johnson: Yeah. When I'm playing NBA 2K with the team, I'm pretty hyped up.
KD Johnson's energy is unmatched 🔋🗣 @AuburnMBB @Swdkd10 pic.twitter.com/pAO56DFZNu
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) January 26, 2022
Q: So who is K.D. Johnson?
Johnson: A lot of people say, 'Is he crazy?' I'm not crazy. They probably see the basketball side of it, but I'm just a chill person normally. I love it, though. I appreciate all of it.
Q: You are probably not the favorite of opposing fans, are you?
Johnson: No, they're not too happy when they see me. When I went to Alabama, they booed me pretty bad. That kind of turned me up.
Q: A steal, a dunk or a 3-pointer – you have to choose one.
Johnson: Probably the dunk because I really don't dunk like that anymore. In high school, I was kind of a dunker. In college, it's fun because I don't do it all the time and I love the reaction I get from The Jungle. It gets even louder.
Q: You've seen the memes from Auburn Twitter. What's been your favorite?
Johnson: I don't know. There's a lot of them. I haven't sat down and thought about it. I love them all. They're all funny to me. I get on there a lot now. I didn't get on Twitter before I came here, but now I love it.
Q: What does that say about this Auburn fan base and their passion?
Johnson: To me, I think they're the No. 1 fans in the world.
Q: What's the goal for you and for this team?
Johnson: I just take it one game at a time. I don't have any set goals. I'm happy that we're winning right now. I just want to keep that going.