The Dons enhanced their basketball future with the signing of highly touted guard Richard Johnson and 6-9 center Howard Smith. These prized prospects from Jefferson High in Los Angeles were snatched away from the likes of USC, Colorado, Arizona State and California. Both Johnson and Smith have impressive credentials. Richard Johnson, in fact, was named Los Angeles City Player of the Year in leading Jefferson High to the City Championship. This lithe 6-4 guard averaged 32.6 ppg last year and came within one-tenth of a point of Curtis Rowe's All-Time City record of total points. (Rowe was a member of the three-time national champion UCLA team and is now a member of the Detroit Pistons in the NBA). Johnson is more than just a scoring machine as attributed by the fans who attended the All-State Classic at the Oakland Coliseum this past June. This game matched the best high school seniors in California and Richard was the star attraction. Besides scoring a game high 29 points, Johnson had 9 assists (TheFoghorn).
