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**DetBNyce** · 11-16-2005, 07:10 AM

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There was an Afro sighting at a recent Pistons practice, but it didn't belong to you know who.

"His is definitely a little bit bigger than mine," center Ben Wallace said.

The new 'Fro belongs to rookie forward Amir Johnson, who took out his braids and picked and puffed a rather impressive hairstyle.

That's one thing Johnson can do on his own. As an 18-year-old in the NBA, he can't do much else yet.

Until a few months ago, Johnson never had experienced life outside of Los Angeles. He never paid bills or rent, never cut checks, and never prepared his meals.

And driving a car? Well, let's just say Johnson thought it would be like hopping into a go-kart. Switch lanes and accelerate.

"I passed it on my third try," Johnson said of the written portion of his driver's license test.

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Back in Cali

Johnson was raised in Los Angeles by his mother and stepfather. Warm weather is all he has known. And he misses it.

He left all his friends, many who are playing college basketball, along with roughly 20 family members, for a faster track to success and riches.

What he doesn't miss is the rough neighborhoods he grew up in. And attending four high schools was no fun, either.

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Making the transition

Deneen Griffin is Johnson's rock.

"When you make that transition from high school to the NBA, I needed my mom's help," Johnson said. "I needed my mom with me to cook and do all that stuff."

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Landing on the radar

It took awhile for Johnson to get noticed in high school, but the Pistons heard about him from West Coast contacts. Scott Perry, the team's director of player personnel, suggested that scouting director George David see him play while scouting the Pacific-10 tournament. When David saw Johnson in a playoff game, he left impressed.

David said Johnson's coming-out event was the Sonny Vaccaro Roundball Classic, a high school all-star game, where he dominated the paint, blocked almost any shot in his range and showed rare athleticism for someone who always had played under the basket.

Johnson also was a gym rat. And he still is, staying after practice to work on his game

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Coming into his own

Off the court is another matter. He's still a kid, but adulthood is right around the corner.

"There's a total support base here for him to succeed," said John Hammond, the Pistons' vice president of basketball operations. "It's his responsibility, though. He's going to be out there making the right decision or wrong decision. And it's going to be on him. I think the support necessary is here."

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