After scoring a team-high 14 points in a national championship defeat as a four-year member of San Diego State, forward Keshad Johnson ended up entering the transfer portal, ultimately committing to Arizona as a grad-transfer after testing the waters for the 2023 NBA Draft.

Johnson had a chance to speak to the local media for the first time on Wednesday afternoon to discuss his transition to Arizona.

Here are five takeaways from Wednesday’s press conference:

Johnson’s decision to come to Arizona

Johnson, who was the first one out his mother’s side of the family to graduate college, celebrated his graduation from SDSU in the Bay Area and made his announcement to transfer to the UA with head coach Tommy Lloyd and UA staff making the trip to celebrate. The grad transfer said that the process of transferring was “stressful”, but it was clear that Lloyd’s appearance at his celebration helped his decision to come to the Old Pueblo.

“For Tommy to come to the Bay Area to celebrate with me, it was like ‘okay these guys really want me, it's really genuine’," Johnson said. "It’s hard to find people like that and I’m glad I made that decision."