Toying with potential lineups is a favorite offseason hobby of Kentucky fans.Among the most popular combinations is always the big lineup, with UK’s tallest players manning a hypothetical frontcourt that overwhelms opponents with length and strength.It’s almost always a better idea on paper than in practice, but depth at the forward and center positions dictates John Calipari won’t have much of a choice whether to go to big looks on occasion this season.At least two of UK’s players standing 6-foot-11 or taller – Willie Cauley-Stein, Dakari Johnson and Karl-Anthony Towns – will have to play together at times. They’re too good not to.For Cauley-Stein and Towns, this appears to be no problem. Cauley-Stein, after all, was a star wide receiver in high school and capable of guarding all five positions, while Towns has a diverse skillset suited for both inside the paint and out.So, what about Johnson? Will the sophomore best known for his size and bruising play close to the basket be able do what he needs to in order to play in a twin-tower lineup?Towns has your answer.”Have you seen Dakari recently?” Towns said. “The man’s running down the floor like a gazelle. I mean, he’s done such a great job of losing weight and becoming a faster and more agile player.”That’s the result of a lot of hard work.When Johnson returned to campus for summer classes in June, one of his first meetings was with Rock Oliver, coordinator for men’s basketball performance, and Monica Fowler, the team’s registered dietician. Together, the three devised a plan that would allow Johnson to build on a promising freshman season that saw him average 5.2 points and 3.9 rebounds.For the first few weeks, Oliver and Fowler sat with Johnson at meals and helped him identify healthy options. A quick study, Johnson didn’t take long catching on, though he admits it wasn’t always easy.”In the beginning it’s hard,” Johnson said. “(Oliver) really stays on me. He stayed on me in the beginning of the summer until I got it and I got what I needed to do and what I needed to eat and what I needed to do right. Then he kind of laid off and I just kept on doing it after that.”Of course, Johnson’s decision to bypass the NBA Draft had a lot to do with wanting to win the national championship he so narrowly missed out on in April. In returning, however, he also committed to taking his game to the next level. That’s what kept him going through those inevitable tough moments.”Just knowing if I did make the transformation what different type of player I would be,” Johnson said. “I would be able to move up and down the court faster, get off my feet lighter. As I saw the results and as I saw the results in my play, I really liked it.”According to the official team roster, the 7-footer is down 10 pounds from a season ago, now coming in at 255. Calipari said the weight loss is more like 20 pounds. Either way, it didn’t take watching him for more than one four-minute segment on UK’s Big Blue Bahamas tour to realize the difference can’t be measured in pounds. Playing a little more than 20 minutes per game on the six-game tour, Johnson averaged 7.2 points and a team-best 7.3 rebounds. Turn those numbers into per-34 minute averages – a measure Calipari plans to use all season in his two-platoon system – and Johnson posted 11.9 points and 12.2 rebounds. Due in part to his improved conditioning, he was a terror on the offensive glass, grabbing 16 rebounds there. He also showed few signs of wear during the grueling tour, posting his best rebounding performances in UK’s final three games. A starter in all six games, Johnson was able to keep up as the Wildcats played at a faster pace in the platoon system.”I’m pretty well fit for that situation because I can run up and down the court faster,” Johnson said. “For the bigs, it’s our job to run up and down the court. Then when you have guards that are so unselfish, as a big you want to run the court.”For all the talk about his offseason work, Johnson’s transformation began well before June.Through the first two months of his UK career, Johnson’s playing time was inconsistent. Struggling to adjust to the college game, Johnson played double-digit minutes just once from the start of December through the middle of January.Accustomed to success after an outstanding prep career that culminated in a national championship, Johnson responded to failure.”In the beginning, my confidence was pretty low,” Johnson said. “As the season went on, I just started doing some individual work and working a little bit harder and my confidence kept on growing as the season progressed.”The results speak for themselves.Johnson asserted himself as a key contributor in Southeastern Conference play and into the postseason, splitting time with Cauley-Stein at the five position. When Cauley-Stein went down in the NCAA Tournament, Johnson stepped up. Without his 15 points and six rebounds against Louisville, UK’s magical run likely would have ended in the Sweet 16.Before the injury, Cauley-Stein and Johnson gave a sneak preview of the damage the twin-tower lineup can do, most notably in the SEC Tournament championship against No. 1 Florida. With 9:35 left and his team trailing 54-43, Coach Cal inserted Johnson for Julius Randle to play alongside Cauley-Stein. Over the next 3:51, they combined for three points, three rebounds, an assist and a block during a 10-3 spurt.Imagine the possibilities with the new and improved Johnson, a healthy Cauley-Stein and Towns. “We complement each other well,” Johnson said. “We all bring different things to the table. That can be hard for the opposition because they can’t just prepare for one type of big guy. They gotta prepare for how many we bring at them.”