Could Joe Johnson be heading back to Atlanta?

Story by Jamar Stephen

Where should Joe Johnson go?

On Thursday, The Brooklyn Nets announced that they have waived former NBA- All Star Joe Johnson from the team after agreeing to a buyout of his $24.9 million contract this season. Johnson joined the team in 2012 upon their moved from New Jersey to Brooklyn, as the Nets took on his 124 million dollar contract that Atlanta Hawks give him in 2010. He was brought in to create an elite backcourt between him and former Nets PG Deron Williams which would result the next season bringing in Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce from the Boston Celtics in a trade. However after only winning one round since the Nets moved to Brooklyn, the franchise has failed drastically and is trying to move on and rebuild as much as possible without any draft picks in their disposal until 2019.

The Nets recently hired former NBA player Sean Marks to be their new GM and immediately he has started to change things by waiving former number 1 pick Andrea Bargiani last week. Although Johnson wanted to stay in Brooklyn, buyout talks began to swell around all week and ultimately resulting in him being waived off the team. Joe Johnson is averaging  11.8 points, 4.1 assist and 3.9 rebounds this season and will be looking to join a playoff team contending for a championship once he clears waivers on Saturday. So where should he go?

Thank you to all of the Brooklyn and New York Fans for your support during my time with the @BrooklynNets. I (cont) https://t.co/C1m6Pa0Gmt

— Joe Johnson 4real (@TheJoeJohnson7) February 25, 2016

From a neutral perspective, Cleveland looks like the most ideal landing spot for Johnson. The Cleveland Cavaliers have the best record in the East and are still the favorite to make it to the finals, but judging on their record against othe title contenders it would seem that they don’t have enough to win a series against both the Golden State Warriors or San Antonio Spurs. The Cavs have more losses than both team combine despite nearly beating he Warriors on Christmas and beating the Spurs earlier this month. Since their blowouts losses to both teams, they have fired David Blatt, signed Tyrone Lue to be the new head, waived Anderson Varejao and traded for Channing Frye.

Most insider reports claim the Cavs are in a prime position to pick up Joe Johnson from free agency. Adding Johnson to the Cavs automatically makes them stronger as it would give them another scorer that can create his own shot with the likes of Lebron James, Kyrie Irving and JR Smith already on the roster. It also give them the ability to space the floor and make Johnson a spot up shooter as he was back when he was on the Phoenix Suns. Come playoff time, Tyrone Lue could opt for a potentially smaller line up comprising of Kyrie, J.R, Joe, Lebron and Kevin Love to give them much needed offence. There is no hiding the fact; the Cavs need all the depth they can get if they want to compete with the top two teams in the league when the playoffs begin in April.

 

Miami Heat

The Miami Heat are holding on as one of the top teams in the East, but is struggling to stay healthy. Chris Bosh is dealing with what appears to be blood clot in his calf and could be out for the season as he is on blood thinners. The teams backup point guards Tyler Johnson and Beno Udrich are also done for the season, ultimately reducing the available depth off the bench. While the heat have done well to ride the injury bug, they is no doubt they still need another big piece in hopes they can hold on as contender for a playoff spots without some of their key players.

Enters Joe Johnson who has proven himself over the years he is a bonafide scorer that can help any team by being versatile enough to play different roles for a short handed team. Less we mention, Joe Johnson is a good friend of Dwayne Wade, so developing an on-court chemistry should come fairly easily. Another option would be to play Johnson as a role player off the bench and intermittently take some of the load off Goran Dragic. By having Johnson on the floor  the Heat have the ability to play a little smaller by putting Johnson at the wing alongside Wade and pushing Deng at the 4, giving the Heat the ability to have a player that can create their own shot which is something they really haven’t he since LeBron James. He can play the 6th man role for the team, which he could prove invaluable as this provides some scoring off the bench while Hassan Whiteside anchors the defence.

 

Atlanta Hawks

Could Joe Johnson head back to Atlanta? The Hawks are somewhat of a different team than what he left behind in 2012. Last season the Hawks had the best record in the East going 60-22 and making a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. Part of that reason was DeMarre Carroll who was essentially replacing Joe Johnson and was able to provide them scoring and defense. This season Carroll is with the Toronto Raptors and has hurt the Hawks this season as the ball is not moving well as it was before. Their record is 31-27 this season are currently 7th in the East. A Joe Johnson return to Atlanta could help the Hawks get back to the level that they were a year ago. Johnson has already played with Jeff Teague and Al Horford before he left in 2012 and can help create easier shots for Kyle Korver and Paul Milsap. Furthermore, who wouldn’t want to see Joe Johnson back on the Hawks? Joe Johnson flourished into a prime player during his initial 7 seasons with the Hawks averaging 20.9 points, 4.1 assists and 3.1 rebounds. He made 6 of 7 All-Star appearance as a Hawk while taking them to the playoffs 5 times. Maybe a reunion between Johnson and the Hawks is what both parties need.