We often wonder what opposing teams, their beat reporters and bloggers are saying about the Celtics. Here’s a look at some enemy chatter from Toronto.
Although his numbers have never been eye catching, he has often been described as the heart of Toronto’s team. The gangly forward never takes nights off, works hard, and appears to be giving his all every time he steps onto the court. His effort was not lost on the fan inhabitants of Jurassic Park. We noticed that he’d always battle for rebounds, hustle on defense, and clearly look to add to his game each offseason. For example, it was evident over the past few seasons that Amir had tried to become more comfortable with becoming a three point threat, even if it never really materialized.
However, perhaps it is his hard nosed, pedal to the metal style that made the truth that much more difficult to accept. Despite his best efforts, and his intangibles, it became apparent this season that if the Raptors ever want to develop into a true contender, Amir Johnson cannot be a starter. On the offensive end, Amir isn’t a true threat inside or out. On defense, he tries but can’t contend with the bigger post players such as Nene or Gortat, but at the same time isn’t particularly effective in small ball line-ups. Frankly, this past season Amir looked like a player was big on heart that was being failed by his body. Whether the front office chooses to bring back the 28 year old is up in the air, but what isn’t is that he will likely be served best as a primary or energy big off of a contending bench.
With most Celtics fans shrugged their shoulders at the signing of Amir Johnson, I thought it would be interesting to see what Raptors fans think of him. The excerpt above is from the Raptors Republic yearly player review.
Johnson is a hard working guy with some glaring limitations. He allegedly can’t score, allegedly can’t defend bigs and it looks as if his body is wearing down.
Despite all those negative qualities, Amir immediately becomes the best defender among our bigs (Zeller, Olynyk, Sullinger, Jerebko, Mickey).
It’s highly likely Danny Ainge has a different perception of Amir Johnson. But even so, and with Brandon Bass leaving, I don’t see how Johnson fits this team. Why spend $12 million on a veteran who will take minutes from your younger bigs? Twelve million is a lot to pay a mentor.
I’d see the value in Johnson if Danny Ainge was simply trying to improve the Celtics for next year. A piece who will help us win a few games and get back in the playoffs. But as Ainge often tells us, this is about the long term stability of the franchise.
I’m told to believe that trades are coming. That it’s highly unlikely the current Celtics roster will look the same in October. It’s going to take a few moves for me to understand what Amir Johnson is doing here.
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