There will be no reunion after all.
After serious mutual interest between the Hawks and Joe Johnson, the recently waived guard/forward will reportedly sign with the Heat after he clears waivers Saturday at 5 p.m. According to several reports, Johnson has committed to a deal to with the Heat in a decision that came down to playing time and fit.
The Hawks were a finalist to sign Johnson.
“I don’t think anything is official or done,” Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said before Friday’s game against the Bulls. “He’s obviously a very good player who we have a lot of respect for, probably the whole league has a lot of respect for him as you can see. I don’t think until something is official is probably not fair to comment any further.”
When asked whether the Hawks have been told they are no longer in the running, Budenholzer restated his stance not to comment further.
Johnson spent seven seasons with the Hawks from 2005-12 and was named an Eastern Conference All-Star six straight years in Atlanta. The organization had several internal discussions about acquiring Johnson before he was bought out and waived by the Nets on Thursday. Several players were consulted on the possible signing.
Johnson, 34, was 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. He 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. He has spent the past three seasons with the team.
The 6-foot-7 shooting guard/small forward is a veteran of 15 NBA seasons after being the 10th overall pick in the 2001 NBA Draft out of Arkansas. He averaged 17 points, 4.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists in his career. His best years came with the Hawks where 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 will likely start at small forward for the Heat. It is unclear whether Johnson would have replaced Kyle Korver at shooting guard or Kent Bazemore at small forward in the Hawks’ starting lineup.
The Hawks opened a roster spot at the NBA trade deadline last week. It was 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 search continues.
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