South Carolina women’s basketball star Raven Johnson isn’t the same player she was when Caitlin Clark waived her off during the 2023 Final Four. Johnson did a ton of behind-the-scenes work to pick herself up after that moment went viral and recently revealed that some of that work included connecting with another Atlanta native and friend — Timberwolves phenom Anthony Edwards.
Raven Johnson doesn’t blame Caitlin Clark for the moment. Nearly everything is fair on the basketball court. But the cruel ways social media responded caused Raven to doubt herself — to doubt that she even wanted to play basketball anymore.
She says during some of her darkest days, Atlanta Dream forward and former South Carolina Gamecock Laeticia Amihere poured into her with Bible verses and regular check-ins; Pastor Travis Greene prayed for her and Anthony Edwards called to offer words of wisdom.
Per Johnson’s self-written story in The Players Tribune, this is what Edwards said when he reached out:
He basically told me to use it as fuel to sharpen my game. I remember he was like, “Don’t let this bring you down. You know who you are…so you can’t let this situation change you.”
“You need to get in the gym and work on your weakness…Nothing’s going to be handed to you. You just need to get in the gym and do what others don’t do…”
My story is mine. That’s why I wanted to write this. @PlayersTribunehttps://t.co/fECboemJlp
— R A V E N (@HollywoodRaven) May 23, 2024
