CSUN interim men’s basketball coach Trent Johnson has his work cut out for him

A lot has changed since 2001.

That’s the last time Trent Johnson was in The Matadome at Cal State Northridge. At the time, Johnson was embarking on his third season at Nevada as a first-time NCAA Division I men’s basketball coach. The Wolf Pack played their season opener in the San Fernando Valley that winter.

Twenty years later, after stops at high-major programs Stanford, LSU and TCU, Johnson is now the head coach of the Matadors. The school hired him on an interim basis July 20.

“I’m always trying to do the best I possibly can,” Johnson said. “I’ve never really gotten caught up in titles, whether it be an assistant, associate or interim.”

When the 65-year old Johnson got hired, the press release from the school said Johnson is “coming out of retirement for this interim appointment”. His last year as a head coach was in 2016 at TCU before being an assistant at Louisville (2017-18) and Cal (2019-21).

“I don’t particularly know where everyone got retirement from,” Johnson said. “When you’re retired, that means you don’t work, right? Well, I’m one of those guys that likes to work.”

Nevada won on that November night 20 years ago. That makes Johnson 1-0 in The Matadome. It’s a cute way to put a positive spin on the uphill journey he’ll begin when practice officially starts Sept. 28. Johnson will be picking up the pieces that former coach Mark Gottfried and his staff left behind after being put on administrative leave April 29, 2021, for alleged rule violations that are still unclear.

The program was in shambles when Gottfried inherited the team in 2018, taking over for Reggie Theus, whose reign was riddled with losing seasons, including just six wins in his last year. Gottfried was hired by then-CSUN President Dianne Harrison in March 2018 amid FBI investigations from his time at North Carolina State.

Gottfried, who went 37-51 in three seasons, and his CSUN staff are still on leave, which is why Johnson’s title is technically “interim.”

Harrison is no longer at the school. The school’s new president is Erika Beck, who was hired in January.

CSUN athletic director Michael Izzi appointed Johnson the coach based on a relationship forged in the late 1990s when the two were at Stanford. Johnson was part of the basketball staff, and Izzi was an assistant athletic director. In such a pinch, up against the fall semester starting, the move has the feeling of Izzi calling on an old friend for a favor: to throw this program over Johnson’s proverbial shoulder and carry it out of the dark.

“I’ve known Mike since 1996, ’97,” Johnson was recalling. “He’s exceptional at what he does. One thing that lacks in our country is genuine and transparent leadership. Mike is all that, and then some.”

A quick glance at the team

Even after 35 years of coaching, this scenario is new territory for Johnson. No spring or summer time with the team. No time to recruit. He welcomes back seven Matadors, only one player with more than 10 starts, and added six newcomers – five transfers and a freshman – since being hired in late July.

“The returners have been very receptive with what I’ve asked them to do,” Johnson said. “The new guys are doing the best they can do get acclimated in a short period of time. It’s been interesting and challenging, but it’s also been fun.”

The team lost leading scorer TJ Starks (21.7 ppg), but will look to Pasadena native Darius Brown (10.5) and Lance Coleman II (13.9), along with immediate impact transfers Elijah Hardy (Portland State) and Miles James (East Carolina University).

James is a 6-foot-6 guard from Inglewood.

“He’s already asking me how many tickets he gets for the home games,” Johnson said laughing. “It’s good to have an L.A. guy on the team.”

Local talent is something Johnson is surprised not to see more of at CSUN.

“I didn’t realize how central the school is to everything,” Johnson said. “There are no excuses as to why CSUN shouldn’t be prevalent in the Big West, and at the top of the league.”

Johnson is familiar with the landscape of Southern California high school basketball. He recruited Jason and Jarron Collins to Stanford from Harvard-Westlake in Studio City.

“There’s also no excuse why this team shouldn’t have one, two, three, maybe four local guys on the team that play on a high level.”

CSUN finished 9-13 overall and 5-9 in the Big West last season, which had cancellations due to COVID-19. The Matadors lost their opening-round conference tournament game 85-63 to Long Beach State.