The Hawks are interested in bringing back Joe Johnson.
And a reunion is a real possibility.
The Hawks are one of several teams with serious interest in signing the seven-time All-Star and Johnson has similar interest in the returning to Atlanta, according to several people familiar with the situation. The Nets bought out Johnson’s contract and waived the guard/forward Thursday.
He will become a free agent when he clears waivers at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Other teams with reported interest in Johnson are the Thunder, Cavaliers, Celtics, Rockets, Heat and Raptors. While Johnson may have several teams to choose from, he would welcome a return to Atlanta, according to a person familiar with the situation.
Johnson spent seven seasons with the Hawks from 2005-12 and was named an Eastern Conference All-Star six straight years.
Al Horford, Jeff Teague and Kirk Hinrich, in his second Atlanta tour of duty, are the only remaining Hawks who played with Johnson. The Hawks recently asked several players about the possibility of bringing back Johnson.
“What I can say about Joe is he always was a great teammate,” Horford said. “He’s a good guy, a good veteran player.”
Hawks president of basketball operations and head coach Mike Budenholzer would not comment on the possibility of signing Johnson, citing NBA tampering rules. He was asked if the Hawks needed a shooter to improve their inconsistent offense. The Hawks go into Friday’s game with the Bulls having lost five of six games, including three straight at home, and have slipped to seventh in the conference standings.
“I love shooting,” Budenholzer said. “I don’t think you can have enough shooting on the court. I do think offensively we need to get better. At times we go back and review the film and get the stats and we are getting good shots and a lot of open shots. So if you have good shooters, they are making them. I haven’t thought of it as adding a shooter but we have to get better offensively and we have to make more shots.”
New Nets general manager Sean Marks, who just took the position after serving as assistant general manager for the Spurs, told a New York radio station on Thursday that Johnson deserves the right to pursue the playoffs with another team if he wants that opportunity.
“The Nets want to thank Joe for his many contributions to the team and the organization,” Marks said in a statement announcing Johnson’s release. “Joe has been a quality professional since joining the Nets four years ago, was a valued member of three playoff teams, and provided many thrilling moments for his teammates and Nets’ fans. We wish him much success in the future.”
Johnson, 34, is in the final year of the six-year $124 million max contract he signed with the Hawks in 2010. He was due to make $24.89 million this season and will be an unrestricted free agent following the season.
The Hawks traded Johnson to the Nets for five players and several draft picks, including a first-round selection, in 2012 in one of the first moves by then-general manager Danny Ferry.
The 6-foot-7 shooting guard/small forward is a 15-year veteran after being the 10th overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft out of Arkansas. He has averaged 17 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists in his career. His best years came with the Hawks when he averaged 20.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists. He was also a part of five playoff seasons with the Hawks.
Johnson also played for the Celtics and Suns before the Hawks. His trade from the Suns to the Hawks in 2005 famously started a feud within the new ownership of the organization, the Atlanta Spirit, which led to several law suits and the eventual dissolution of the original group.
Johnson’s averages have declined each year with the Nets. He averaged 18.8 points per game in his final season with the Hawks. His averages dropped from 16.3, 15.8, 14.4 and 11.8 in each subsequent season.
The Hawks opened a roster spot at the trade deadline last week, a move necessitated when Tiago Splitter was lost for the season with a hip injury. Budenholzer said the team would look at the waiver wire market, the international market and the NBA Development League market to fill the roster spot. The Hawks would look to add a veteran by waiver and international markets and a young player by the D-League market.
The Hawks made a serious run to sign Anderson Varejao after he was waived by the Cavaliers last week, according to a person close to Varejao. The center signed with the Warriors.
“With Tiago’s injury I think there could be an argument that we need a big,” Budenholzer said. “But at the end of the day, you need good players. The more good players that you can add to the group, that’s probably important. That’s always been our mantra. We are more interested in good players than some of what the perceptions of what we need will be.”
