Hawks expect Johnson to accept contract offer

The Hawks met with Joe Johnson for a second time in Los Angeles on Thursday and expected to work out the details of a maximum contract offer for the free-agent guard, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting.

The person said the Hawks expect Johnson to accept their six-year contract offer, which is expected to be worth about $121 million when the NBA sets the salary cap next week. The person did not want to be identified because the Hawks are not commenting on the details of their negotiations with Johnson.

The Hawks made the contract offer at the start of the free-agent negotiating period at 12:01 a.m. Thursday. Johnson later met with officials from the Knicks who, like all teams other than the Hawks, are limited to making Johnson an offer for five years and about $92 million.

The person with knowledge of the negotiations said Johnson prefers to return to the Hawks. Johnson, 29, is a four-time All-Star who spent the past five seasons with the Hawks.

A person familiar with the Hawks' plans said re-signing Johnson would be the first step in the team's plans to become a serious contender in the Eastern Conference after they were dominated in the second round of the playoffs in consecutive seasons. The person did not want to be identified because the Hawks haven't publicly discussed their plans.

The person said the Hawks made re-signing Johnson a priority because the team almost certainly wouldn't be as good next season without him. If Johnson leaves, the Hawks wouldn't have the salary-cap flexibility to replace him with a comparable free agent.

The Hawks assessed the market for Johnson and found that a few teams with salary-cap space were prepared to offer him the five-year maximum contract. The Hawks then decided to made an aggressive effort to re-sign Johnson.

The person said general manager Rick Sund and his staff realize that adding Johnson isn't enough to make the team better on its own. They would still want to add more talent, including a starting-caliber center, and Hawks owners are willing to pay the NBA's luxury tax “for the right player,” according to the person.

If Johnson re-signs, the Hawks' payroll for next season would be near the projected $68 million luxury-tax threshold, and they would pay a 100 percent tax for salaries above it. The Hawks plan to use the nearly $3 million they netted from selling one of their draft picks last week to help offset that potential cost, according to the person with knowledge of their plans.

The news that the Hawks would offer Johnson a maximum contract seemed to catch many NBA observers by surprise. Media commentators and Hawks fans widely criticized the decision on Twitter and in blogs.

One NBA.com report suggested Hawks owners are willing to sign Johnson to the maximum deal because they are looking to sell the team soon. The report said they aren't worried about Johnson's salary increases later in the contract because they will have sold the team by then.

But a person familiar with the Atlanta Spirit group's finances disputed that characterization. The owners are not looking to sell the team, which is one of the few NBA franchises not burdened by debt, according to the person.