11:30am: Johnson’s new 10-day contract is official, the Pacers announced (via Twitter).
9:26am: The Pacers will sign veteran forward James Johnson to another 10-day contract, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The signing was confirmed to Wojnarowski by Johnson’s agent, Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports.
Johnson didn’t see any game action during his first 10-day deal, which expired on Sunday, but he has appeared in five games for Indiana this season with four points, four rebounds and five assists in limited playing time. He signed a standard contract with the Pacers in mid-December after they reached a buyout agreement with Daniel Theis, but was waived on January 17 when the team needed to open a roster spot to complete the Pascal Siakam trade. Johnson rejoined the team two days later upon clearing waivers.
A 15-year NBA veteran, Johnson first came to Indiana before the start of last season. He has appeared in 23 total games during that time, but has mostly served as a veteran leader in the locker room.
Once Johnson’s second 10-day contract becomes official, the Pacers will be back to a 14-man roster, giving them one opening heading into the trade deadline. Teams are limited to two 10-day deals with a player during a season, so Indiana would have to sign Johnson to another standard contract to keep him for the rest of the season.
Question, not a complaint – JJ is great for the team, though why not make him an assistant coach and fill that roster spot? There’s not even a thought of giving him meaningful/leverage minutes. And buyout players are going to soon be available….
Probably want to keep multiple spots open.. though I assume that by next season he’ll be in the coaching or training staff.
I hate it when people say this. Do we need to get rid of all veterans and have 15 young guys running around jacking up 3s? Veterans are important in the NBA and in any job in Life. The NBA has been doing this forever. Why give him a management job… Because they like his wisdom, then when any team likes a veteran then give him a management position. Veterans are important to help the young guys. Who cares if he plays two minutes a night. Stop thinking like Silver
I don’t mean to be mean but I if you didn’t play a sport you won’t understand. If they made James Johnson a coach or trainer etc he won’t be a “player” anymore meaning that the players won’t trust him like they do as a player/vet. Even if he pledges to the players at the end of the day he’s a coach and coaches stick together just as much of as the players sticks together. He wouldn’t be able to connect to his teammates like he does in a veteran/ player role.
Also, the Pacers don’t need another young player out the g league or off the streets. They are a solid team with young guys already. There is no need to waive him so you can guess the potential of a rookie who doesn’t bring anything to the team besides potential that won’t be used on the court
Giannis better get the Ball back