Joe Johnson has decided to stick around Atlanta afterall, agreeing to a 6-year/$119 million deal with the Hawks. Heading into free agency, it was almost a sure thing Johnson would be finding a new home in the offseason. But, apparently, the Hawks massive offer was too much for him to walk away from. The contract is worth nearly $27 million more than any other team could have offered. The Knicks and Bulls also showed strong interest in signing Johnson.
While Johnson has been a main piece in Atlanta's recent turnaround over the past few seasons, he pretty much mailed in his performance against Orlando in the playoffs this past season. When his team was getting blown out by over 25 points per contest, Johnson seemed more infatuated with trash talking his own city, saying he didn't really care if fans showed up to games or whether or not they booed their team.Johnson will definitely be welcomed back by his teammates, and the city likely will forgive him for his playoff meltdown. But is Joe Johnson really worth $119 million over six seasons? That's an awfully large commitment with the uncertain future of the NBA's collective bargaining agreement. Owners have discussed greatly lowering the maximum money thrown at players in an attempt to save franchise's from themselves. If this is the case, Atlanta will look pretty bad for throwing so much money at a player like Johnson.
Atlanta can expect Johnson to continue playing at an All-Star rate during the regular season, but when is he going to step and truly lead this team in the postseason? With the amount of money he is now earning, fans and management will both have higher expectations for the Hawks guard. If he doesn't produce at the most important time of the season, Johnson really isn't worth half the amount of money Atlanta is paying him. Until Johnson proves he can lead his team in the playoffs, it seems he may be remembered by most as the player who was most overpaid in the summer of 2010 Free Agent Frenzy.
