Ivan Johnson might have been in the NBA long ago if not for his temper.
Johnson finally made it to the league as an unlikely addition to the Hawks’ roster. With a baby on the way in March, Johnson vows to keep his cool so he can stay in the league and support his family.
“I have been working so hard to get here over the years,” Johnson said. “Now that I’m here, ain’t no messing it up.”
Johnson is 27, well past the age he could reasonably expect to debut in the NBA. At 6-foot-8, he’s undersized for power forward, and he picked up plenty of baggage on his winding path to Atlanta.
But Johnson made the Hawks’ roster after he showed toughness and tenacity each time he took the court during the preseason.
“We need that on this team,” Hawks All-Star center Al Horford said admiringly during training camp.
Johnson said he wasn’t sure he would ever make an NBA team, but before his mother died in 2007, he promised her he would keep trying.
“As you get older your dream starts to fade after a while,” he said. “You have just got to keep pushing, man. That’s what I kept doing.”
Johnson is on the team, but he’s near the end of the bench for the Hawks. He can’t afford to keep messing up.
Johnson washed out after one season of run-ins with coach Ernie Kent at the University of Oregon. After one year at Division II Cal State-San Bernardino, Johnson played a season in the NBA Development League before joining the Korean Basketball League.
That opportunity ended last year when the KBL banned Johnson after he reportedly made an obscene gesture at a game official.
“Taking an action against Johnson was inevitable since he had a record of frequent misconducts in the past,” a KBL official told the Korea Times.
Johnson headed back to the D-League last season. He was good enough to be named first team all-league, but volatile enough to lead the league in technical fouls. Johnson’s coach with the Erie BayHawks eventually benched him for his behavior.
“That’s just my emotions for the game,” Johnson said. “If I feel I’m being cheated, my emotions, they go crazy sometimes. That’s what I’ve been working on. I try to keep my cool. As long as I keep my cool, I’m good.”
Hawks coach Larry Drew said the team looked into Johnson’s background and were satisfied he wouldn’t be a problem. The Hawks invited Johnson to a minicamp after last season and brought him back for training camp.
As it happened, Johnson arrived at the same Drew was trying to prod his team to play a grittier style. The Hawks decided to keep Johnson and waive long-term center project Keith Benson, their draft pick in June.
“To be perfectly honest, we didn’t know he would come on the way he did,” Drew said. “His motor is something you can’t teach, and he brings that motor every practice. He just plays hard, and there’s not enough guys like that.”
Johnson’s doggedness is made more effective by his linebacker’s build, and a seemingly permanent scowl make him even more intimidating. The joke among Hawks staffers was that no one wanted to deliver the news to Johnson if he got cut.
Johnson said he’s not as angry as he looks.
“Since I got the mean look, people automatically think I’m mean or something,” Johnson said. “I’m really a nice, cool dude.”
NBA game officials might need to be convinced.
Johnson made his NBA debut Tuesday in the Hawks’ season opener at New Jersey. Within two minutes he earned his first technical foul, though his offense wasn’t obvious.
“I’m just a rookie,” Johnson said. “That’s how it goes.”
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