Joe Johnson: He wasn’t a superstar, but he made a difference
Aug. 19, 2005: The Hawks celebrate their rousing victory over Steve Belkin. (AJC file photo)
For the first five years, the Hawks got what they paid for. Over those five seasons, Joe Johnson was their leading scorer and their best player. If not for him, this team’s 0-for-the-21st-century playoff drought might have continued to this day. That said …
If not for Joe Johnson, the Hawks’ owners wouldn’t have been suing one another. In the summer of 2005 Steve Belkin balked at the price of a sign-and-trade — general manager Billy Knight wanted to ship Boris Diaw and two No. 1 draft picks to Phoenix; Belkin believed one pick should suffice — and the whole thing wound up in a Boston courtroom, where Knight famously declined to shake Belkin’s hand, and the veil of contentment among ownership was put asunder.
No, that wasn’t Johnson’s fault. He had no control over these owners, and he delivered on the promise Knight had seen in him. From being the Suns’ fourth-best player, Johnson developed into “the best Hawk since Dominique Wilkins.” That was the description offered by Michael Gearon Jr., another of the owners, and it was and remains the gospel truth.
There were nights, many of them, over those first few seasons when Johnson was the only reason to watch the Hawks, and as the team began to improve he remained the best reason. He scored 35 points, 20 in a frenzied fourth quarter, against the Celtics in Game 4 of the 2008 playoff series, and that performance is among the finest by any Atlanta Hawk ever. Afterward Boston’s Sam Cassell said of Johnson: “He’s their franchise ballplayer.”
But Johnson was a strange sort of franchise player, not least because the Hawks — stop the presses — are a strange franchise. His arrival was overshadowed by the management kerfuffle. His best years here were the ones when nobody was watching because the team was losing. Even that Game 4 against Boston is more widely recalled as the night Zaza Pachulia went forehead-to-forehead with Kevin Garnett.
About that Game 4 windfall: It would take Johnson 31 games over more than three calendar years to break 30 in the postseason again. That became the biggest knock: Come the playoffs, the franchise ballplayer wasn’t often a franchise ballplayer. Johnson averaged 20.8 points over his seven regular seasons as a Hawk; over 47 playoff games, he averaged 18 points.
It was after one of his worst showings — eight points on 15 shots in a 30-point Game 3 blowout by Orlando here in 2010 — that Johnson said he didn’t care if fans showed up. That summer he became a free agent, and the Hawks, who’d just promoted Larry Drew to head coach in large measure because Drew promised to back away from Mike Woodson’s Iso-Joes, spent $120 million over six seasons to keep Johnson from leaving.
In sum, they lavished superstar’s wages — Johnson was making more than LeBron James, who also was a free agent that summer — on a player who had demonstrated he wasn’t quite a superstar, and now that player was closing in on 30 and his team didn’t want him to play in the same way that had made him an All-Star, and he’d just angered the paying customers to boot. With the new contract, the Hawks were no longer getting what they paid for. Within two years, Johnson wasn’t even their second-best player.
For all the good work he did here, Johnson was never the people’s choice. He’s not a smiler, and the bulk of his public comments tended to the negative. (Even after victories, Johnson could be heard to say his team needed to do something better.) He was never an unwilling passer — he and Mike Bibby worked beautifully together — but the Iso-Joes could leave that impression.
When the Hawks reached an agreement to trade Johnson to the Nets, local reaction was euphoric. No more albatross contract! No more sour Joe faces! Lost in the latest bit of giddiness was the memory of a similar giddy day in the summer of 2005, when the other Hawks owners had deposed Belkin as their NBA governor, and the sign-and-trade for Johnson had finally gone through and a celebration was staged on the floor of Philips Arena.
A free agent of substance had committed himself to a team coming off a 13-69 season, and for a downtrodden franchise that marked a new beginning. Seven years later, nobody was sorry to see him leave, but if not for Joe Johnson, this city might never have realized the Hawks were still in business.
By Mark Bradley
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182 comments Add your comment
Jt
July 6th, 2012
1:09 pm
Perfectly said, Mark. I have nothing to add.
Jimmy Crack
July 6th, 2012
1:12 pm
Whatever the case, Joe will get a standing “O” the next time he visits the Highlight Factory.
biz
July 6th, 2012
1:15 pm
We may not be able to hit the jackpot with the few stud FA signings but the move allows the Hawks to build a smart team that can survey the field take advantage of other GM’s mistakes while continuing to build our reputation and remaining at the ready for good fortune. Signing someone of the level of Dwight Howard is difficult, signing someone of JJs talent is much easier and can be done at a fair price. Lets go Danny Ferry!
Thanks for the years of service Joe. Wish you the best. Happy to see your contract leave the building.
Only in Moultrie
July 6th, 2012
1:15 pm
Mark,
Do you know who Phoenix selected with those 2 draft picks we gave them along with Boris Diaw?
Only in Moultrie
July 6th, 2012
1:16 pm
Also, Phoenix would’ve been really good had they kept Joe.
JSS
July 6th, 2012
1:18 pm
The problem in 2005 is that Belkin was a A** in a room full of A**es! He knew then what the Thrashers strategy was… He knew then what (lack of a) Hawks strategy was! The DASG was going to be mess, it only mattered to what degree!
Joe Johnson was like Junior Bridgeman, he should have been a piece instead of a centerpiece!
DP
July 6th, 2012
1:26 pm
Joe Johnson showed he was more about stats and a paycheck than winning when he forced his way off a great Phoenix team with Nash, a young Stoudamire and Shawn Marion to a horrible Atlanta team.
I saw an interesting note on ESPN.com a couple of days ago. It said Josh Smith was potentially more open to staying with the Hawks long term because he liked the moves Danny Ferry has made so quickly, i.e. dumping the ballhog Johnson and the near worthless Marvin Williams.
I think the Hawks will be better off without Johnson whether they sign anybody to replace him or not. Teague can finally play as a point guard with the ball in his hands, Josh Smith can slash to the basket, Horford can post up and play pick and pop with willing passers. Wait until Deron Williams finds out first hand what a black hole Joe Johnson is on offense. I predict sparks will fly in Brooklyn.
Nelson Muntz
July 6th, 2012
1:36 pm
I’ve been waiting for this appreciation to be expressed. When the story of the trade went down, it was interesting to read what in-the-know members of the national media think of Joe Johnson. Their opinions bore no resemblance to the vitriol directed at him on this blog. Overpaid? Definitely. Way overpaid. And Ferry’s miraculous unloading of the contract deserves all the praise it is getting. But every Hawks fan needs to acknowledge the truth of the first paragraph of Bradley’s column.
Marvin
July 6th, 2012
1:36 pm
Where is the love! I was a #2 draft pick- in the whole draft! So what if I had many nights with 30 minutes pl;ayed, 4 pts and 2 rebounds. I played as soft as you can and still got paid. Plus, with Joe hogging the ball, I quit trying to get open. I’d just spectate and watch him endlessly dribble or Josh throw up another brick in the wall.
Big Crimson 75
July 6th, 2012
1:45 pm
1. Joe deserves & will receive a standing O when He returns next Season.
2. Steve Smith & Dikembe were as good in Atl as Joe, if not better.
3. Belkin was wrong about the trade. At the time, Joe was worth his 1st contract. He was worth Boris Diaw & the picks —- which I believe only turned into 1 first rounder — Branden Rush.
4. Joe could have been a better “leader” & given up some of the $$$ to allow Atl to keep Jamal last yr.
5. Brooklyn made a huge mistake. Williams, Johnson, Wallace, Brooks & Lopez are the new Hawks!!! First Rd NBA Playoff purgatory here We come.
j
July 6th, 2012
1:46 pm
Thanks Joe for getting us back to a respectible franchise. Joe is not only a good player but a good citizen. Hope your time in Brooklyn in great!
BulldogBen
July 6th, 2012
1:48 pm
Heads up boys, Bradley’s chumming the waters…….
beone
July 6th, 2012
1:51 pm
The team’s expectations (leadership) and Joe were never aligned. If we’d had a real coach, he would have forced the issue around year 2 or 3 of Joe’s tenure with the Hawks and when it likely didn’t work, we would have known and could have moved in a different direction. The lack of a coach who demands respect and adherence to his directives has been killing the Hawks and will continue to do so until it is corrected. Even in the NBA coaching matters.
Skram30082
July 6th, 2012
1:52 pm
Hey Mark,
Does this mean Steve Belkin was right?
Just wondering…
zgoldatl
July 6th, 2012
1:56 pm
Well done MB. I agree completely about the impact Joe had in turning around this franchise. He reached his ceiling and that’s no fault of his own. He is a class act. I thank him for what he has done and wish him nothing but the best in Brooklyn.
Whatever
July 6th, 2012
2:02 pm
It’s not necessarily that I wanted to see Joe go, just his contract.
donte080
July 6th, 2012
2:08 pm
Actually, it’s kinda funny, but Hawks ended up being “right” in re-signing Johnson…if they hadn’t, we would have been a worse team, and also wouldn’t have ended up with anything for him (Morrow + draft pick)….most of his contract was back-end loaded…all in all, thanks to Ferry and Nets, Hawks made out like bandits on Johnson..
JSS
July 6th, 2012
2:21 pm
Belkin was never right…
atltodolavida
July 6th, 2012
2:24 pm
Joe and Josh carried the Hawks to a 4 seed this year, don’t forget.
Scoots
July 6th, 2012
2:26 pm
Mark – good piece.
JJ does deserve credit for helping get the Hawks back to winning, but he wore out his welcome and got overpaid in the new contract. And as talented as he is, he just doesn’t bring any energy to the team from what I could tell.
I think our sentiments can be described in this way: “It’s been real, Joe.”
WeBurn
July 6th, 2012
2:40 pm
Mark,
You REALLY think he is the best Hawk since ‘Nique?
My Rankings for the best Hawk since Dominique
1. Mt. Mutumbo
2. Smitty
3. J-J-J Joe Johnson
4. Mookie
5. J Smoove
Ted M
July 6th, 2012
2:40 pm
Mark – Who the heck do you want Ferry to get for small forward?
MaRKBrAdSUX
July 6th, 2012
2:46 pm
He didn’t make a difference he sucked. My prediction is if the HAwks keep the team they have they will still be the 4th, 5th or 6th seed playoff team
D-Man
July 6th, 2012
2:56 pm
Seven yrs was too long and it wasn’t all Joe’s fault. The same ownership that brought him here should have seen what we the fans and anyone with any b-ball knowledge could see and that was getting Joe Johnson was NOT enough in the first place. He couldn’t carry them, but they (team mgmt) kept putting him in that uncomfortable position. He just wasn’t that guy. If they put him with another high caliber free-agent or otherwise player maybe that would have worked who knows, but they (team mgmt AGAIN) never tried to get someone else of that caliber and thus the dubious “Iso-Joe” show mercilessly continued no matter how many embarrassing beat downs occurred come playoff time. Everyone in the free world knew “Iso-Joe” was what Woody was going to call. Hell, Stevie Wonder could see it coming. The Hawk fans didn’t deserve that and even as much as I tired of “No Show” Joe’s emotionless playoff play- he didn’t deserve that either. He didn’t do himself any favors with those “I don’t care if these fans never show up” comments after trying to build another wing to Phillips Arena with all those bricks he laid that night, but hell it probably was out of frustration with the whole situation. These fans didn’t care to show up either to see the longest running re-run in syndication of NBA playoff flops, excuse me embarrassment either. How could Joe expect fans to be behind a team that set a record for THE most lopsided playoff loss EVERRRR (Orlando Magic 30+ pt wins every game in a 4-game sweep) plus that 2008 game 7 up in Boston which happened to be the first and only time I’d EVERRRR seen a basketball game be over in the first five freaking minutes of said game, struggles with a Miami Heat team (pre-LeBron James of course) they should have mopped the floor with, or the same struggles with a Bucks squad that shouldn’t have even been in the playoffs? Ever single time THAT moment arose that they could take a step forward here comes a Josh Smith 3 pointer, a Mike Woodson terrible substitution and/or play call, bad foul, turnover, offensive shutdown, or worse – the Iso-Joe play. We in the military would call this whole situation a FUBAR (@#$%-ed up Beyond All Recognition) of mass proportions from the top down. A bad choice in free-agency, a stubborn coach (Woodson) with no imagination, an ownership devouring itself whole, a GM (Billy Knight) who couldn’t draft his way out of a wet paper bag, and fans who were tired of it all. I believe this was a doomed marriage from the jump and this divorce was better for all parties involved…especially Joe. We were only so happy that we got Joe at first because we were willing to accept ANYTHING that meant we could exit the cellar-dwellar status we were cursed with for years before him. So now Joe you can go be the best supporting actor on another team that you should have always been here in Atlanta. Good luck JJ, and DANNY FERRY FOR MAYOR!!
GO HAWKS!
D-Nice
July 6th, 2012
3:11 pm
For the record I disagree with the best player since Nique moniquer. I guess Steve and Mookie never played here right? Steve was a better shooter and better passer and thats not even close.
Big Man
July 6th, 2012
3:15 pm
Joe is the second best Atlanta Hawk ever. This trade was a mistake unless we get both Chris Paul and Dwight signed to multi year contracts.
Native Son
July 6th, 2012
3:22 pm
Like I said before. Joe was not the problem, nor Marvin. Coaches run out of plays;” ISO Joe”…Last seconds in the game; clear out for” ISO Joe” when every coach, and player; knows “Joe” gets the ball. For the first five years, “Joe’ was showing the new young talent how to win, as he broke every record in the book for minutes played. In my opinion ” He got the big contract, but he’d already earned it.’ He brought a franchise off the floor, and made them relevant again. Good luck, and Thank You J-J-J- Jooeee Johnson!!!!
Peace from The Most Native
Post Script: Marvin didn’t draft himself after playing one year at UNC, and off the bench. But he payed for it every day in Atlanta. Another team would have tried to develop his talent instead of tossing him in the starting line up with three other rookies. In spite of all of that, Marvin is a solid performer, and we probably would have seen him flourish if not for the fact he had to give the ball up to Joe. Thanks Marvin, and good luck to you.
PPS: I think you all know exactly what Joe meant when he said ‘ He didn’t care if no one showed up”
HawksFanSince'89
July 6th, 2012
3:38 pm
If Joe was a true superstar, who wanted to win a championship, he would have restructured his contract, so the Hawks could bring in more talent, to help up us win a NBA title.
Good Riddance,
HawksFanSince’89
JayD
July 6th, 2012
3:49 pm
Not a smiler??? Fickle Atlanta sports fans – This will not end well!
KBP
July 6th, 2012
3:50 pm
Better power forwards than Josh . . . Aldridge, Nowitzki, Griffin, Gasol.
Better center than Al . . . Howard, Bynum, Hibbert, Garnett.
Better shooting guard than Joe . . . Bryant, Wade, ? ? ?
How were Al and Josh the two best players when Joe was on the team? They both are too limited offensively to be considered better than Joe. Al is not a great defender in the post and Josh is a very good weakside shot blocker but not a great defender when other PF’s take him away from the basket.
Joe may not be a superstar, but he certainly was the best player on this team. Are the eastern conference coaches all overstating his talent by placing him on 6 all-star teams and 1 all-nba team? Our Hawks needed more from Joe, but he is who he is. Why blame him for not having James’ talent? Why blame him for not being an assassin like Bryant and Wade? We will miss him this upcoming year(not his contract) when we are back to winning 30 games. Where will the offfense come from? Morrow,a spot up shooter? Jenkins, a spot up shooter? Al? Josh? Even if the Nets don’t get Howard, their current team is better than ours because they have Joe and we don’t. Lopez owns Horford, Williams is better than whomever is our PG, and Joe is better than whomever our SG is and Humphries is a better rebounder than Josh. If neither teams adds any more players, they are clearly better than us.
tom
July 6th, 2012
3:51 pm
JJ teased us with that great performance in the 4th quarter against boston in 08′. it is a shame he couldn’t build upon that. Great player no doubt. good luck to you JJ.
GTanner
July 6th, 2012
3:52 pm
Best since ‘Nique is the gospel truth? No. But, then again you supported that albatross of a contract until you recovered your senses.
Chilidawg
July 6th, 2012
3:53 pm
Joe did a lot of good things here, but he could not carry a team by himself. By today’s standards Joe is not a superstar. It is ironic that much of the Hawk’s trouble started with the acquisition of Joe, and the internal fighting among the owners. Was Steve Belkin correct? Despite the good things Joe did for the Hawks, I think Steve Belkin was correct. There is a teachable moment in all of this, Joe Johnson is soft spoken and doesn’t call people out, and fans will always have positive memories of his time here. While Steve Belkin was portrayed as a big mouth jerk and a greedy capitalist.Although he was actually right, the fans will never acknowledge that. At the risk of sounding like a big mouth jerk, I do think this is one of the better comments on this blog.
moboman
July 6th, 2012
3:55 pm
For once the Hawks get rid of a guy at the right time in his career. We had no choice but to give him the new deal, and you can’t blame him for that. Who would turn that down? His agent played his leverage cards correctly. He had a positive impact on this franchise. He’s not a superstar. But he was a star while he was here, and made the Hawks worth watching again. Give him his props for that. Lets hope we turn the trade to our best advantage with Ferry at the helm. But no reason to hate on Joe for being what he was, he worked at his craft, and gave his best efforts, playing big minutes every night. I wish him well.
Tumbledown
July 6th, 2012
4:07 pm
BobWeiss (12:28) – I disagree with your opinion. It is important more than ever to not be satisfied with a team that can just make it to the playoffs. This type of attitude has permeated our sports teams and fans too much, and we must not ever be satisfied with just making the playoffs. I want championships. We must accept nothing less.
Sage of Bluesland
July 6th, 2012
4:09 pm
Somewhere, Joe Johnson is finally getting that pole-polishing.
1988
July 6th, 2012
4:28 pm
There’s nothing really wrong with making the playoffs every year and not winning championships. At the very least, it’s a lot better than sustained losing (see: Royals, Kansas City; Pirates, Pittsburgh; Bills, Buffalo). I just read an article the other day talking about how Royals fans still talk about 2003 in glowing terms, a year when they finished just over .500 and third in their division, just because it was so much better than any other year in the past 25 or so. Ask fans in Minnesota how much better off they are without Kevin Garnett (no playoffs in eight years).
That being said, the problem with the Hawks was that there was always a sense, from ownership down, that making the playoffs was the only goal. From what I’ve seen of Danny Ferry so far, he seems really serious about building a title contender. If he wanted a playoff team, he would have kept Joe Johnson. If the Hawks swing and miss on all the best available free agents and they end up out of the postseason for the next five years, I will really be lamenting the good ol’ days when Joe Johnson was helping the Hawks to a four seed. But organizations don’t have a lot of chances to be truly great, and if the Hawks had to give up a sure thing (being good, but not great), for a chance at true greatness and a championship, I’m glad they took the risk.
Native Son
July 6th, 2012
4:30 pm
@Chilidawg – Steve Belkin wanted the hawks to tank, and get lottery picks( not a bad Strategy, except for the fact you ain’t made the playoffs in 10 years) The other owners wanted to put a team out that would draw attendance and pay dividends immediately.
@Hawks’FanSince’89 – Restructure “your” paycheck so mgmt can bring in more talent. The contract was bad either way you go. Joe is 30, and a restructured contract would have kept him here even longer, as it would probably involve a no trade clause.
To all: Steve Smith came with bad knees, wasn’t mobile, and Mookie was “allegedly” up in smoke. They had a nice team, with good chemistry, and thats all. They definitely were not going anywhere near the finals, so it was imperative that team needed busting up. The team prior to the JJ trade was as close to getting to the finals as anybody. I think they needed some better shooters, and a real center. And I would define that as someone that was actually groomed for the position.But never mind. What do I know?
Peace from the Most Native
PS: IMVHO; there is a big wide chasm between Nique’ and Joe. And Smoove is right there except, no can convince him that he’s not a guard
.
GSmooth
July 6th, 2012
4:32 pm
Joe helped us get to the playoffs 5 years in a row.. unfortunately I will only remember how he bashed the city and fans after getting blown out by Orlando in 2010. He was a good player but not clutch in the least.. the dude missed countless free throws that could of won us games. Good riddance. Time to move forward.. Danny Ferry got rid of the 2 plagues this franchise had.
reebok
July 6th, 2012
4:33 pm
I’m confused. I thoughtb the Hawks moved to Winnipeg?
BobWeiss
July 6th, 2012
4:44 pm
Tubledown, I’m not necessarily satisfied with losing in the first round either. However, a team will often get hot at the right time in the playoffs. It would have been very easy for the Dallas Mavericks to blow up their team before the 2011 season because they appeared to be a team on the downside. They would win 50+ games each year and flame out in the playoffs nearly every year. In 2011, they found lightning in a bottle and won a championship. You can’t get hot in the playoffs if you aren’t in the playoffs.
If the Hawks are able to use the cap space to sign better talent and win a championship, nobody will be happier than myself. I’m just not jumping up and down with joy about trading one of our best players for a bunch of spare parts.
superiorblogman
July 6th, 2012
4:51 pm
Good article. I was watching sportcenter the other night and saw that Nash is only a 8x all-star and was almost floored. Joe is a 6x all-star and people cheer him gone for the dream that cap space allows them to have. Once again, I don’t get it. I have heard it said before that selling a man a dream can break him. A lot of you so-called fans will end up down when you finally realize that Paul and Dwight are not coming here. Ferry is allowing you people to dream. He really has yet to do anything to put a better product on the floor. In this age of the internet you people get too much into stuff other than the product on the court. The true problem with the product on the floor is Josh Smith’s bad decision making and Al Horford playing out of position, but dream and and rejoice in giving a 6x all-star who may end up in the Hall of Fame away.
superiorblogman
July 6th, 2012
4:54 pm
Nash is only a 8x all-star. Joe is a 6x all-star. Joe may end up in the Hall of Fame and people rejoice in giving him away for no talent in return. You can’t make anyone sign with you to fill up all that cap space. Ferry is allowing you people to dream. You will wake up once it is too late to a nightmare. We solved nothing on the court as long as your best player, Horford is playing out of position and your worst shooter, Smith, is taking more jumpers than anyone on the team.
superiorblogman
July 6th, 2012
4:56 pm
Joe is a 6x all-star Nash is a 8x all-star. Joe could end up in the Hall of Fame and it will go down in the history books that the Hawks traded him for scraps and you people are so blind that you can’t see that just because Ferry allows you to dream of cap space.
superiorblogman
July 6th, 2012
4:59 pm
We did not fix anything on the court with that trade. Fixed more with the Marvin trade to be honest because Harris can be flipped again because he is a actual talent. As long as Horford is playing out of position and Josh Smith is making bad decisions this team is broken on the court.
Brad
July 6th, 2012
5:10 pm
There were a few times, few and far between, when Joe showed that he had the talent to be a truely elite player. During that 4th quarter of game 4 in 2008, he was unstoppable. Shooting 3’s, driving to the basket, mid-range, he was unbelievable. When he hit that 3 after breaking Poe’s ankles, me and my son almost destroyed our house. Unfortunately, for what ever reason, he never could come close to duplicating that quarter again. For those 12 minutes, Joe Johnson was a superstar!
Delbert D.
July 6th, 2012
5:25 pm
Steve Smith was better.
21shudbintop50
July 6th, 2012
5:31 pm
Well said Bradley. More an indictment on ownership than JJJJJJ…Joe Johnson! We can’t (or at least shouldn’t) -hate the playa.’ If we need to hate something, ‘hate the ‘game’ the spirit’ has been playing. Hopefully (uuughhh, did say hope, which is NO strategy) the Ferry move portends for the future.
21shudbintop50
July 6th, 2012
5:33 pm
…BTW. forgot to say ‘Much LOVE Joe!’ You were not a Super Star; but, you were/are definitely a Super player. thanks for making the Hawks relevant again.
Ted M
July 6th, 2012
5:35 pm
“My prediction is if the HAwks keep the team they have they will still be the 4th, 5th or 6th seed playoff team”
Dude, the point of getting rid of Joe was to free cap space so the Hawks would be able to get whats needed. Where the heck have you been? Did you just get connected to the internet for the first time?