Bucks open practice to young man who had open heart surgery



MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The Milwaukee Bucks opened their practice floor on Tuesday, January 28th to a young man who still has NBA dreams.

22-year-old Dominique Johnson had a heart transplant back in December of 2012 -- and on Tuesday, January 28th the Bucks let him come to practice.

He met with the players and coaches.

Johnson is now back in college and hopes to soon be able to play basketball.

"Talking about playing for the basketball team next season, I talked to the training team about working with me over the summer to get me back in basketball shape and ready for next season," Johnson said.

"To watch him bounce back his amazing strength, it was hard but at the same time he stayed strong and he stayed true to his conviction that -- 'you know what -- I'm going to get better,'" Johnson's mother, Kitchy Johnson said.

Johnson received 14 units of blood, as well as platelets and plasma during his transplant.

The Bucks and the BloodCenter of Wisconsin want to remind people they need donors.

The Bucks are holding their annual blood drive on March 4th.