Topic: Kevin Johnson

Kevin Maurice Johnson (born March 4, 1966) is the current mayor of Sacramento, California. He is Sacramento's first African American mayor. Prior to entering politics Johnson was a basketball player in the NBA, playing point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Phoenix Suns. As a basketball player, he was a three-time NBA All-Star and five-time All-NBA selection who holds many records for the Phoenix Suns franchise. At University of California, Berkeley, Johnson had been a two-time All-Pac 10 Conference player who was also an honorable-mention All-American by the Associated Press sportswriters.

As mayor of Sacramento, Johnson has met with President Obama and his administration three times about critical regional issues. He regularly consults with the nation's leading mayors, including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg; former Washington D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty; former San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom; Newark Mayor Cory Booker; and former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, among others. Johnson has served as a guest commentator on several networks including CNN, MSNBC, and Fox, and has been featured on Larry King Live, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Dateline NBC, and The Colbert Report.

Johnson was born and raised in Sacramento, the son of Georgia West and Lawrence Johnson. After Johnson's father drowned in an accident in the Sacramento River, he was raised by the Peat family, Johnson's grandparents. He would go on to become a local standout at Sacramento High School, where he starred in both baseball and basketball, leading the state of California in scoring as a senior (32.5 ppg).