How Joe Johnson could fit with the Detroit Pistons

The Detroit Pistons will host 17-year NBA veteran Joe Johnson for a workout. If offered a contract, here’s what we can expect from the 38-year-old.

Joe Johnson had no plans to retire after his 17th NBA season but, being left without a contract, he had no choice. He didn’t give up.

The 38-year-old wing won the Big 3’s Most Valuable Player award, championship and may parlay that into a NBA contract after a one-year hiatus from the league.

The Detroit Pistons are one of three teams that will give Johnson a tryout this week. The Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets will also host Johnson, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

Johnson’s illustrious 17-year career has been nothing short of consistent. In the final six seasons (of seven) with the Atlanta Hawks, he was an All-Star. The prime of his career (2005-12) was filled with excitement, as he averaged 20.9 points, 5.2 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game in seven seasons with the Hawks. That includes scoring 25 per game in 2006-07.

He’s durable, having played fewer than 70 games in a season just three times in 17 seasons, including the 2017-18 season that was split between the Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets. He scored 6.8 points per game while shooting 40.6 percent from the field and a career-worst 27.6 percent from 3-point range.

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He bet on himself, played in the Big 3 and drew the attention of NBA scouts and executives. He led the league in scoring with 175 total points, 21.9 per game (eight games). More impressively, he was 63-for-130 (48.5 percent) from the field and 16-for-41 (39 percent) from 3-point range in his Big 3 MVP season.

Evidently there is still gas left in the tank but can he withstand a full 82-game season after only playing eight games since he left the NBA? Even if he can be effective in 60 games off the bench, that would be beneficial.

The Detroit Pistons have two needs on their roster – a backup center and depth at small forward. Johnson would help fill one of those needs.

If the tryout goes well, the Pistons could lock Johnson in to a non-guaranteed contract that would give him an invitation to training camp. That’s where things will get tricky in finalizing the roster.

There are already 14 guaranteed contracts on the Pistons roster. Michael Beasley signed a non-guaranteed contract and is direct competition for Johnson. Christian Wood, who was claimed off free agency waivers, is on a non-guaranteed contract and seemingly could fill the backup center position.

Ed Stefanski, Dwane Casey and the rest of the Pistons staff will have to determine what best suits their plan to improve a team that went 41-41 last season and was swept out of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs by the top-seeded Bucks.

Johnson has a leg up on Beasley, who will have to miss the first five games of the regular season due to a suspension for violating the league’s anti-drug policy. Johnson provides immediate availability, making him an attractive option.

At 6-foot-7, the seven-time All-Star has the size to play on the wing and be able to switch competitively defensively.

Offensively, he thrives moving towards the basket with the ball in his hands. They don’t call him “ISO Joe” for nothing. He has no issues driving towards the basket, pulling up, stepping back, hitting leaners or posting up smaller defenders. He’s comfortable taking contested outside shots.

A major difference between the NBA and Big 3 is ball movement and moving off the ball. There is more isolation basketball and spacing in 3-on-3 hoops. In the NBA, it’s imperative to work hard off the ball to become free for an open shot or cutting to free space up for a teammate.

Surely this isn’t lost on Johnson because of one year away from the NBA. The fundamentals of basketball are engraved in his mind playing at a high level in the NBA for so long. After all, half of his 20,405 career points have come with a usage rate of around 18 percent.

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For his career, he’s hit 40.6 percent on corner 3-point attempts. He’d likely flow well within the Pistons offense if Derrick Rose or Luke Kennard ran the offense off the bench. It would also provide insurance if something were to happen with Tony Snell.

The Pistons are so thin at small forward with only Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and Sekou Doumbouya with guaranteed contracts behind Snell. It isn’t far-fetched to see Johnson and Beasley given serious consideration to make the Pistons roster, if not both.

That would give Doumbouya a “redshirt year,” so to speak, to get stronger and improve his game to fit the Pascal Siakam mold that Casey envisions. But if Johnson and Beasley were to make the roster, a corresponding move would need to be made before Game 1.

Depending on how his tryouts go, Johnson could see the Pistons as the best opportunity for playing time due to their youthfulness and lack of depth on the wing. It will all depend on his priorities. The other good news is, the Pistons have a connection with vice chairman Arn Tellem, who was Johnson’s former agent according to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.

Competition brings out the best in people and adding Johnson could be a key development for Detroit.

Do you want to see Joe Johnson in a Pistons’ uniform? Let us know in the comments or join the conversation on the Piston Powered Facebook page and on Twitter @PistonPowered.