Talk a little bit about your feelings on Johnson’s 2017-18 run…
Johnson: Honestly, who didn’t have a rough year last season? Besides Goran Dragic, who rode the wave of the Eurobasket title into his first All-Star selection, much of Miami’s lineup hit turbulance. However, I think Johnson’s was more apparent because his positional flexibility changes his role nightly. One game he’s running through the post and the next he’s supporting at point guard. That transition can take a lot out of anyone, and Johnson was no exception. Still, Johnson performed around the average in player efficiency (15.8) so his season wasn’t all bad. Not to mention his hearty contributions in the historic, double overtime contest with the Denver Nuggets. Shooting almost 77 percent from the floor over the course of 46 minutes played is no joke, and is a testament to Johnson’s work ethic.
Ebrahim: It was a little weird seeing Johnson start so many games, especially since he only started five games in 2016-17. But I definitely understand why it had to be done with all the injuries and rotations Miami had to deal with. And I think that contributed a lot to his reduction in stats. I would like to have seen him shoot better from the 3-point line, but I like that he reduced his turnovers, even though he was playing predominately against the opponents’ starters. I guess we could also attribute his drop because of his reduction in usage rate… Regardless, last year threw a lot Johnson’s way, and he seemed to have handled it as best as he could, given how much was asked of him.