Miami Heat Column: Tyler Johnson was clouded by unfair expectations

Tyler Johnson and the Heat on to bigger and better things

It wouldn’t surprise me if Johnson was happier playing for $800 thousand than $19 million. On $800 thousand, Johnson was a fan favorite. He was a poster boy for #Culture. He was living in South Beach instead of Fresno or South Dakota. Making $19 million, Johnson was the same player and the same guy, only he became the scapegoat for the frustrations of Heat fans. He went from the poster boy for #Culture to poster boy of the front office’s failures.

Johnson talked often about the pressures of living up to that contract and adopted the practice of meditation. And, look, meditation is a great habit. I do it daily. But you know why I do it daily? Because I’m a writer stricken with chronic anxiety. Take it from me, most people who are already happy don’t start meditating, and shouldn’t multi-millionaires be happy? As it goes: more money, more problems.

Last March, I asked Johnson about his meditation practice, and he said it helps him stay accountable to his daily intentions.

“It gets me more focused,” Johnson told me while stretching his hamstrings. “Being able to quiet everything that’s happening on the outside, so it can’t penetrate your energy.”

He did his best.

Trading Johnson had to be done, but not because of anything he did or didn’t do on the court. Johnson always played hard, beat the odds to carve out a successful career, and tried his best to live up to both internal and outside expectations.

The deal was an admission of guilt by the Heat’s front office and, ultimately, a move to boost the bottom line during a down year. This is the business side players talk about. But, hey, congrats to the Suns. They made their team better this week.