Throughout the summer, GoRhody.com will run a weekly feature series introducing the members of the 2025-26 Men's Basketball team. The series will focus on their respective basketball journeys.

KINGSTON, R.I. - The wolf is highly social, disciplined and fiercely protective of its family.  Spend a few minutes with Rhode Island point guard RJ Johnson, and it's easy to understand the connection he feels with the wolf, which often makes appearances in emoji form on Johnson's social media platforms.

The 6-1 point guard is a natural leader with a reputation for high character and leadership. He comes from a strong family support system that instilled the virtues of discipline and accountability in him from an early age. Beyond that, both his first and middle names - Randy Lovell - literally mean wolf.

He shares his first name with his father, and his middle name with his maternal grandfather.

"We used to visit my grandfather all the time for Thanksgiving, and I have some very vivid memories of my time with him," Johnson said. "I am the only person in our family at all to share his name. My middle name is his name. It means wolf. My first name means wolf as well. A wolf is a protector. The wolf mantra resembles a lot of who I am. It holds a lot of the qualities and characteristics that I hold myself to."

Johnson brings a first-in, last-out mentality to the gym daily. In his three seasons at Charleston Southern, teammates often talked about the rigors of Johnson's daily routine and diet. The work off the court has produced results on it. In three seasons at Charleston Southern and a pair of abbreviated years at Holy Cross, Johnson has nearly 1,200 career points to go with 375 assists in 105 career games. He has averaged 11.3 points, 3.6 assists and 2.0 rebounds per game while shooting 84.1 percent at the free throw line and 33.7 percent from the arc (114-for-338).

"Naturally I am an unselfish guy. Getting my guys the ball is what I thrive off," Johnson said. "When I am open, I can obviously make shots. That threat to score allows me to create for other guys. The game is all about balancing those things. But my goal is sharing the basketball and making the guys around me better."

The mindset of a point guard is what drew Johnson to Rhode Island, where he could have the chance to play for Archie Miller.

"I wanted to play for a guy who has been in basketball for a while and has won at a high level. That stuck out to me," Johnson said of his new head coach. "His style of play is pretty similar to how I played last year. It is higher paced, which means more possessions. That was intriguing because the transition will be fairly seamless. I had a good relationship with Coach (James) Whitford as well. He was the main guy who connected us."

A third connection for Johnson was URI's director of basketball performance Paul Woelmer, who was at Holy Cross during Johnson's time there.

"My first two years at Holy Cross, Coach (Woelmer) helped me a lot," Johnnson said. "I think I gained 15 pounds of muscle my first year on campus at Holy Cross. Him being here was a blessing."

In talking about Johnson, Woelmer praised Johnson's ability to provide a daily example for his teammates. Woelmer said Johnson never took a day off, bringing a consistent effort in the weight room and to the practice floor that rubbed off on others. For Johnson, that has long been a trait that has come naturally.

"Discipline became a part of my life at a young age. I was blessed to have two great parents in my mom and my dad who have been present in my life," Johnson said. "They showed me what hard work looked like, what discipline looked like. At a young age, that was something that I leaned into. I always saw the benefit of it. Once you get a little taste of success through discipline, it's easy to continue doing it. It's kind of my calling card. I am not the biggest guy. I am not the strongest guy. I'm not the fastest guy. But my level of discipline is one of the sole reasons I am here.

"The biggest thing with accountability is that first, you have to hold yourself accountable. When other guys seeing what I do on a day-to-day basis, it's easier for me to tell them, 'Hey, I need this from you.' They see me taking care of my business. It works hand in hand. Me holding someone else accountable makes me hold myself accountable. It has always been that way for me. It has become my nature."

As important as the work ethic is, Johnson also puts an emphasis on the human side of the game as well. On every team he has been a part of dating back to middle school, Johnson has written songs about his teammates. Johnson's father is a musician, another interest that grabbed him from an early age. Following in his father's footsteps, RJ started writing songs at the age of 12. In fact, last season he wrote the music that was used pregame for all Charleston Southern games.

"I grew up in the church, where my father sings, plays guitar and plays piano. I grew up playing the drums," Johnson said. "I always had an interest in music outside of sports. I started writing songs with Garage Band or on the iPad. As I got older, I started getting into it a little more seriously. It was an outlet for me outside of basketball. It helped me get my mind away from things. It's something I enjoy doing. I release music all the time. It is therapeutic in a way."

Over the years, Johnson incorporated his music into fostering relationships with his teammates.

"I have always made a song for my teams, even going back to middle school. The Rhody song is coming. I don't know when, but it's coming," Johnson said with a smile. "It's a great way to bring camaraderie to the team."

Combine the work ethic with a natural ability to connect with others on a personal level, and you see the natural leader Johnson is.

"The biggest thing for me, as a leader, is getting to know guys off the floor," Johnson said. "I want to build relationships with the other guys and have some sort of connection with them beyond basketball. It's okay to be different. We have guys who are older and guys who are younger. There is still going to be that common ground that you find.

"It's about having conversations, asking guys where they are from, what their families are like, what music they like to listen to. That stuff bleeds on to the court. When you build that relationship and show guys that you care about them, it's easier to hold them accountable. Guys will follow you if they trust you."

Next week's feature will be on forward Keeyan Itejere. To order tickets for the 2025-26 Men's Basketball Season, click here.


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