Sandburg twins Will and Jonah Johnson’s future after high school is still fluid, but one thing is for sure.
They both want to continue their basketball careers playing together.
“Always,” Will said. “We always want to play together.”
The seniors opened their final high-school season helping the Eagles win Reavis’ Jim Tracy Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 26.
The twins and senior forward Will Hooks were named to the all-tournament team as the Eagles beat Chicago Christian 69-43, Kennedy 71-17 and Reavis 59-23 to win the four-team, round-robin tournament.
The Johnson brothers know it won’t be easy to be sold as a package deal to colleges, but Aurora, Concordia and some junior colleges have shown interest.
“We’re trying to see what our options are,” Jonah said.
Will is looking to study criminal justice while Jonah is undecided.
Both, however, are looking to change things up around the Orland Park school. Sandburg hasn’t had a winning season since 2017-18 and hasn’t won a regional since 2002-03. The Eagles were 16-16 in 2023-24 and 16-17 last season.
Early returns for Sandburg (3-0) show impressive defensive numbers.
“It’s a major, major point this year,” Will Johnson said. “Defense wins championships.”
“I like our intensity on defense,” Jonah said. “If we keep playing like that, we will definitely be in position to win. Last year, we were stagnant on defense. This year, we are more active.”
Hooks said defense is a key and he likes the overall vibe of the team.
“I like how we come together during a game and how we play as a team,” he said. “There’s not one player better than the rest. We just play together and we’ve been playing together for so long and now it’s just natural.”
Helping the Eagles sharpen their defensive focus is former Thornwood, Lincoln-Way North and Lincoln-Way West coach Bob Curran, who is an assistant.
“Bob is aggressive and he’s the defensive coordinator,” coach John Daniels said. “He gets the credit for all of that. We’re still growing because we’re still learning the rotations because we’re so aggressive.
“We’re blessed to have him.”