Ernie Johnson’s Failed Dream Paved Way for HoF-Worthy Legacy Following Bitter Realization

Ernie Johnson has been working for TNT for more than 35 years now and is loved by fans around the world. His hilarious antics with NBA legends Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kenny Smith, and others on Inside the NBA is unmissable. For his incredible service to the field of broadcasting, he was inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame recently. Given his proficiency, commitment, and success in his role, it is safe to assume that this was his “dream job”. However, it was not.

Johnson made an appearance on the Point Forward podcast hosted by former NBA players Andre Iguodala and Evan Turner. After he joined the show, Turner wanted to know who Ernie was before he became popular. The sportscaster then revealed his failed dream. Johnson said, “My original dream and my goal was to be a big league baseball player because that’s what my dad did. Played for the Braves back in the 50s. I somehow seemed to lack the talent to carry that through.”

He noted that he played one year of baseball at Georgia but that did not work out. Even though he could not achieve his goal, he had no problem laughing about it. Ernie joked, “I walked on as a freshman and was told to walk off as a sophomore! And so that was it, man.”

However, it was extremely difficult as he was lost for direction. Johnson disclosed that he even thought about becoming an English teacher and a baseball coach. Despite his initial failure, EJ once again decided to follow in his father’s footsteps.

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Ernie Johnson worked his way up in broadcasting

Ernie Johnson noted that his father, Ernie Johnson Sr., was a broadcaster for years. He added, “He never really pushed me in that direction, but I thought I’d give it a try and kind of worked at the campus radio station in Athens. And enjoyed getting into the games for free and that kind of thing.”

The 67-year-old stated that he then bided his time and worked his way up the ladder. As he worked in small TV stations gaining experience, he wanted to see how far it would take him. Ernie also said that he could not believe that he had already worked for 35 years with TNT. Safe to say it worked out great for him.

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