When speaking with reporters yesterday, Nets shooting guard Joe Johnson wanted to set the record straight and make it clear that he never asked out of Atlanta, writes Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com. Johnson came to the Nets in July after the club bowed out of the Dwight Howard sweepstakes.
“Everybody thinks I made this trade,” Johnson said. “I had nothing to do with it. “Every time I run into somebody when I’m in Atlanta, they ask me, ‘Why did you leave?’ I didn’t have nothing to do with it. I’m just glad that I came to a great organization and a team who wants to win.”
While the Hawks have gone to the playoffs in five consecutive seasons, Johnson & Co. were unable to advance beyond the conference semifinals. Last season, Atlanta was bounced in the first round 4-2 by the Celtics. Now, Johnson finds himself in Brooklyn as one-half of what could be the NBA's best starting backcourt.