Veteran forward James Johnson reported back to the Heat today after being away from the team for more than a week, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Johnson was banished from training camp by Miami at the start of the month, with initial reports suggesting that he failed to meet the team’s strict conditioning standards. Agent Mark Bartelstein later said that Johnson passed his conditioning test but had failed to meet the weight requirements set by the team. Either way, upon rejoining the team today, the 32-year-old was eager to show he’s ready for the coming season.
“It was Day 1 of earning my respect back,” Johnson said, per Winderman. “… It’s good to be back home. I got exactly what I needed; I got exactly what I needed to hear. Hopefully I can put it all behind me after this.”
While the Heat have a deep roster, Johnson projects to play a frontcourt role for the club, as his size and athleticism allows him to guard multiple positions on defense. Johnson has now missed two of Miami’s five preseason games, but head coach Erik Spoelstra doesn’t expect it to take long to get him back up to speed.
“It’s good to have him back and hopefully everything is behind us now,” Spoelstra said. “It’s not a shock to him what our system is.”
good to have him back. this teams veterans are going to be the backbone of any playoff run this year.
Playoff run meaning 7 or 8 slot and out
Lovely hair, James.