HOUSTON -- Joe Johnson’s tenure in Boston lasted only 48 games during his rookie season. The 36-year-old swingman was the No. 11 overall pick of the 2001 NBA Draft by Boston, but he was dealt away by general manager Chris Wallace to the Phoenix Suns for a pair of veterans (Tony Delk, Rodney Rogers) to boost the C’s chances of a deep playoff run in 2002.
The move ultimately proved to be a massive blunder for the franchise. The Celtics fell short of the NBA Finals with the additions, Rogers walked in free agency after the season and Johnson emerged as an All-Star just a couple years later in Phoenix.
Nearly 17 years later, Johnson is still a valuable contributor in the NBA. The contending Rockets picked up the swingman last month after he was bought out by the Sacramento Kings following a trade deadline deal with Utah and Cleveland.
The Celtics were rumored to be one of the teams that were actively pursuing the free agent on the open market back in February but the 37-year-old shot down that possibility in an exclusive conversation with BostonSportsJournal.com.
“Nah, not really,” Johnson said when asked about whether the Celtics actively pursued him. “I mean they may have, but they weren't that interested.”
Johnson had posted 7.3 ppg and 3.3 rpg in 31 games with the Utah Jazz this year, but had struggled with his shooting (42% FG, 28% 3PT) during his 17th NBA season. With Gordon Hayward out of action, the prevailing wisdom was that the Celtics were looking for help on the wing in the buyout market, but Johnson’s assertion proved otherwise. Instead, he opted for his former Suns coach in Mike D’Antoni and the Rockets over several other suitors.
“I know the style of play here,” Johnson said. “It suits me. That was the biggest thing for me. Being familiar with D'Antoni, knowing Chris, James, Gerald. It made the decision a lot easier... Mainly, it was a chance to win. Nothing was promised to be coming here. Coach D’Antoni said, ‘To be honest with you, it's going to be hard for me to find minutes for you since we're playing so well.’ I understood that.”
Johnson has posted modest numbers off the bench (6.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg) over six games thus far, including continued struggles (33% FG) shooting the ball. The Celtics may not have been able to convince Johnson to sign with them over Houston anyway, but time will ultimately tell whether avoiding the aging veteran was the right move for this postseason run.
Gerald Green thinks Isaiah Thomas has found a happy new home in Los Angeles
Former Celtic Gerald Green has been a bench weapon for the Rockets for a couple months now after debuting with them back in December. However, he still keeps tabs on most of his former teammates in green all across the country, including his close friend Isaiah Thomas. It’s bittersweet for him to see that group spread across the country.
“I’ve been in touch with all of them. I’ve been in touch with Jae, Isaiah, been in touch with Kelly, been in touch with Amir, Jonas. It’s tough, I know for Isaiah and that group of guys that were in Cleveland, it’s a business,” he explained. “I think he understood it. I really think he missed Boston a lot. I think he wanted a chance to try one more time with that team and see what they could really do because of how good we were last year. But I wish him all the best in LA, man. I really think he’s going to blossom well in LA. I think he has the type of support he’d need. Cleveland, I felt like he didn’t have the support he’d really need. That’s just my opinion. But IT is a great player, man. I think once he gets healthy, gets comfortable whatever situation he’s at, you’re going to see the same All-Star Isaiah that you’d seen in Boston.”
Thomas has slowly but surely found a rhythm in his new home, scoring in double digits for five consecutive games since the All-Star break, to the delight of Green.
“I talked to him right after he got traded and told him I know he’s happy to be in L.A,” Green said. “I mean, s***, Cleveland or LA man, you know what I mean? I think he was very happy about that. It’s kind of like a breath of fresh air. It’s a lot of pressure playing in Cleveland obviously when you have a time everyone is saying is supposed to go to the Finals. So now he doesn’t have to worry about it. Now he can just kind of go be himself around some friends and family that truly love him for him, and I think he’s going to be successful.”
Other NBA news and notes
- Two months after giving up a second-round pick as part of a trade package to acquire Trevor Booker from the Brooklyn Nets, the Sixers waived the reserve power forward on Wednesday in order to sign free agent Ersan Ilyasova. There’s no question that the veteran Ilyasova, who has 3-point shooting range and played in Philadelphia last year, is a useful addition to the roster. Booker never was a fit with the Sixers though, which makes the decision to give up a second-round pick for him just baffling. Amir Johnson already has a better version of Booker’s skillset on both ends, so having both traditional bigs on the roster never made sense. Wasting an asset on an expiring contract like Booker is exactly the kind of maneuver that Danny Ainge has sought to avoid in recent seasons. Any future asset can be valuable in the right spot (as we saw with the Celtics including an extra second-round pick to appease the Cavaliers in the Kyrie Irving blockbuster). Using a pick on a player that you end up dumping midseason is another questionable move by the Sixers front office.
- A couple of last minute buyouts before the March 1 deadline found homes in the past week as Corey Brewer signed with the Thunder and Shabazz Mohammed inked a deal with the Bucks. Both players are not reliable shooters, which likely made each of them unappealing pieces to the Celtics. The signings cap a pretty quiet buyout market compared to most years. After Joe Johnson and Marco Belinelli, there were really few useful veterans out there. Several players that looked like candidates to be bought out (Vince Carter, Brook Lopez) remained with their teams at the buyout deadline.
- Some signs of hope in San Antonio as Kawhi Leonard indicated that he would be returning to the floor this year after speaking to teammates via an ESPN.com report. They may end up needing him to even make the postseason after dropping eight of their last ten games overall. They are just two games from dropping out of the playoff picture altogether out west.