Dwyane Wade Believes Joe Johnson Still Has Something Left in the Tank to Play in the NBA
Former NBA player Joe Johnson cannot walk away from the game just yet. At 39 years old, he is still competing at a high level. He recently participated in The Basketball Tournament, where his team lost in the semifinals.
Former NBA star Dwyane Wade believes Johnson can still play in the NBA and play at a high level.
Joe Johnson loves the game of basketball
Though he is almost 40, Johnson still believes he can play in the NBA, and he’s not going to walk away from the game just yet. He last played in the league during the 2017-18 season. During that season, he spent time with the Utah Jazz and the Houston Rockets. In 2019, Johnson returned to the NBA and signed with the Detroit Pistons, but he was waived before the start of the regular season. Johnson has a lot of NBA experience and has had success throughout his career.
The former Arkansas University standout has an impressive NBA resume. He is a seven-time NBA All-Star and made the All-NBA Third Team in 2010. Johnson played for seven different NBA teams during his career. There was a stretch where he made six consecutive All-Star teams when he was a member of the Atlanta Hawks. During the 2006-07 season with the Hawks, Johnson averaged a career-high 25 points per game. Johnson was one of the top scorers during his NBA career. He loved the pressure and always wanted the ball in his hands when the game was on the line.
Johnson was a player that teammates enjoyed playing with, and he always brought that competitive nature to practice. After the 2017-18 season, Johnson kept his options open in hopes of a team signing him. When that didn’t happen, he decided to join the BIG3 league IN 2019. He had a lot of success playing in the league, leading his team to a championship and he was named the MVP of the league. After his performance, many people wanted to see him back in the NBA.
Joe Johnson playing in The Basketball Tournament
In 2020, Johnson was still not on an NBA team, but the NBA veteran was able to find a team. Johnson joined Overseas Elite, a team that has had a lot of success in The Basketball Tournament. The Basketball Tournament is a single-elimination tournament played each summer in the United States. It started in 2014, and the winner of the tournament receives money. This year’s winner will receive $1 million.
Overseas Elite won four straight championships from 2015 to 2018. The team has become a powerhouse in the tournament. Most of the players who participated in the tournament played in college, overseas, and even had a brief stint in the NBA. When Johnson joined Overseas Elite, the team became a favorite to win it all. Overseas Elite lost in the semifinals, and Johnson and his teammates missed out on $1 million.
Dwyane Wade believes Joe Johnson still has what it takes to play in the league
During the tournament, Wade made a tweet saying that Johnson can still be productive on a winning NBA team right now. Johnson and Wade were teammates toward the end of the 2015-16 season in Miami. Johnson played in three games with Overseas Elite, and he led the team in scoring (22 points) and assists (four assists). He had one game where he scored 35 points.
Johnson’s performance may have caught some eyes of a few NBA teams, and the veteran would jump on any offer that he receives. It’s obvious that former NBA players like Wade still think that Johnson has what it takes to play in the league.
