Actually, I forgot he also spent a couple of years with the Suns until Kori reminded me.
The Celtics got him in a trade for Rick Robey in maybe the greatest heist in NBA history.
DJ should have been in the HoF a long time ago.
I remember Dennis Johnson was one of my favorite guys to watch when I was a kid. I was always kind of fascinated by the teams he played on -- the back-to-back Finals teams in Seattle and those early-80's Suns teams with DJ, Truck Robinson, and Walter Davis that were always good, but never seemingly good enough to get over the hump and into the Finals.
Truly sad news. RIP and condolences to all in DJ's life.
Yeah that was Westphal to the Sonics for DJ, which was a huge trade at the time. He played in Phoenix for about 3 years - he averaged like 18/5/5.
I had a poster of Truck Robinson in my room and a German Shepherd named after him.Good memories.
I grew up in RI, we didn't have a team so the Celtics were ours. The first game I ever went to was during Larry Bird's rookie year. I followed the Celtics forever growing up and rooted for them against the Lakers all through the 80's even though I was living in California by then.
The 80's Celtics were great to watch and DJ was always incredible. He will be missed.
I recommend to anyone who hasn't had a chance to see those Celtic's teams, grab a DVD from any of their championship years. If you love to watch this game it's worth your time.
His career stats:
http://www.basketballreference.com/p...lkid=JOHNSDE01
In the stats you can sort of see his evolution from a guard with a high numbers of steals, blocks, and rebounds into more of a point guard role.
Actually, DJ was never a pure 1 or 2, he was a classic 1.5 who could do either role.
Also, even thought his FG% wasn't very impressive he was famous for having a much better FG% in the fourth quarter and hitting dagger Js. Kind of like a less extreme version of Robert Horry. He probably played better defense on George Gervin than anyone else.
All-NBA First Team: 1981
All-NBA Second Team: 1980
All-NBA Defense First Team: 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1987
All-NBA Defense Second Team: 1984, 1985, 1986
I guess Red didn't like the guard selection in Heaven.
That's sad to hear. I loved watching him play with Bird, McHale, and Parrish back when basketball was basketball and nothing more. He was an awesome player, but boy was he ugly. R.I.P.
DJ was a tremendous player. I always hated the Celtics, but I couldn't help but respect them. He was one of the top 10 defensive players of all time imo.
I remember when DJ and Downtown Freddie Brown would absolutely torch us. They were a great backcourt.
Loved the Truck - especially when he was retrieving all of the Pistol's missed shots and leading the league in rebounds while playing for the then New Orleans Jazz.I had a poster of Truck Robinson in my room and a German Shepherd named after him.
RIP D.J.
People forget that he was a uva rebounder as well. Super all around player in his day.
Dennis thank you for some of the best ball on two the best NBA teams ever, 84 and 86 Celts. Were it not for Lenny Bias death I'm sure DJ would have been on two more (straight) and the Laker stench would have been minimalized.
He also has a younger brother who had a 50 inch verticle jump. Thought it was hype until i saw the tape. Played on JC national champ team and then went to Arizona State. Don't know why he did not go pro.
"boy was he ugly"
Just think how much better a basketball player and coach he would have been if he were really good looking (in your opinion).
Rip.
AUSTIN TOROS GAMES POSTPONED ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY
GREENVILLE, S.C., February 22, 2007 – The NBA Development League announced today that Austin Toros home games scheduled for Friday, February 23 against Fort Worth and Saturday, Feb. 24 against Tulsa have been postponed due to the sudden death of Toros head coach and former NBA great Dennis Johnson.
The games will be rescheduled for later this season.
http://www.nba.com/dleague/austin/po...ts_070222.html
RIP
Rip....
The Magic Johnson Stopper!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43DrapEn5QA
had to post that
I'm saddened to hear this. May he rest in peace.
Slam magazine on DJ a few years ago :
Everyone talks about "Bird stole the ball". Well, do you think made the f**kin' basket? DJ was the lesser half of what might have been the toughest perimeter tandem ever (and we don't mean Danny Ainge). The lesser half. Lesser, as in, flamboyance, not skill. He was the original Scottie Pippen, the first Joe Dumars, the second KC Jones. No guard in the NBA history had played D the way DJ played D. From David Thompson to Andrew Toney to Isiah Thomas, he spanned generations, ended careers. "DJ?" Naw, we call him "PE". Why? Because he shut them down.
RIP. Great point guard. I can't believe he isn't in the HOF. I heard on TNT that he was a Finals MVP and a six time all star.
He helped lead the Sonics to their one and only NBA Championship -along with Gus "the Wizard" Williams. If I remember correctly, he was MVP of the 1979 Finals between his Sonics and Wizards
RIP
Former NBA Star Dennis Johnson Dies
By JIM VERTUNO
The Associated Press
Thursday, February 22, 2007; 8:29 PM
AUSTIN, Texas -- Dennis Johnson, the star NBA guard who was part of three championships and teamed with Larry Bird on one of the great postseason plays, died Thursday, collapsing after his developmental team's practice. He was 52.
Johnson, coach of the Austin Toros, was unconscious and in cardiac arrest when paramedics arrived at Austin Convention Center, said Warren Hassinger, spokesman for Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services.
Paramedics tried to resuscitate him for 23 minutes before he was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead, Hassinger added. Mayra Freeman, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner's office, said there will be an autopsy.
The Toros postponed home games Friday and Saturday nights, the NBA Development League said.
"He was one of the most underrated players in the history of the game, in my opinion, and one of the greatest Celtic acquisitions of all time," said former Boston teammate Danny Ainge, now the Celtics' executive director of basketball operations.
"D.J. was a free spirit and a fun personality who loved to laugh and play the game. We had spoken at length just the other night about basketball and his excitement about coaching the Austin Toros. "
Toros spokeswoman Perri Travillion said she was talking with Johnson on the sidewalk outside the building when he collapsed. Johnson was joking about getting a parking ticket.
"We were laughing," she said. "He just collapsed."
Travillion said she called 911 and that Johnson never regained consciousness. She said Johnson did not appear to have overexerted himself at practice and didn't complain of any discomfort before he collapsed.
Johnson, a five-time All-Star and one of the top defensive guards, was part of the last Boston dynasty. He spent 14 seasons in the league and retired after the 1989-90 season. He played on le teams with the Celtics in 1984 and 1986 and with the Seattle SuperSonics in 1979, when he was the NBA finals MVP.
"Whether he was leading his teams to NBA championships or teaching young men the meaning of professionalism, Dennis Johnson's contributions to the game went far beyond the basketball court," NBA commissioner David Stern said. "Dennis was a man of extraordinary character with a tremendous passion for the game."
Johnson was a favorite teammate of Bird's, and the two were part of one of the most memorable plays in Celtics history.
During the fifth game of the 1987 Eastern Conference finals against Detroit, Bird stole Isiah Thomas' inbounds pass under Boston's basket and fed Johnson, who drove in for the winning layup. Boston won the series in seven games but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA finals.
"Dennis was a great player, one of the best teammates I ever had, and a wonderful person," said Bird, now president of the Indiana Pacers. "My thoughts and condolences are with his family at this difficult time."
Bill Laimbeer, the center on that Pistons team, remembered Johnson as a "great player on a great ballclub."
"He played with passion and grit," Laimbeer said. "It was fun to play games like that. You always enjoyed it. It made for not only great games, but great entertainment."
In the 1984 finals, Johnson guarded Magic Johnson effectively in the last four games. In 1985, he hit a last-second jumper against Los Angeles that won the fourth game. In 1986, he was part of a team that featured four Hall of Famers _ Bird, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish and Bill Walton.
"He was truly one of the good guys to play in the NBA, and he was a great teammate who was fun to be around," McHale said.
Johnson had a reputation for delivering in big games.
"I hate to lose," he once said. "I accept it when it comes, but I still hate it. That's the way I am."
He averaged 14.1 points and 5.0 assists for his career. When he retired, he was the 11th player in NBA history to total 15,000 points and 5,000 assists.
"Dennis was a great player for the Sonics. He helped us win a championship and was the MVP of the finals," said former Seattle coach Lenny Wilkens, now the Sonics' vice chairman. "But more importantly, he was a tremendous person. He seemed to be enjoying coaching in Austin, and was in great spirits. He's left us way too soon."
Johnson made one all-NBA first team and one second team. Six times he made the all-defensive first team, including five consecutive seasons (1979-83).
"As far as a person, he was a great compe or," Sonics teammate Jack Sikma said. "He wouldn't let things pass. He would cause some friction if he felt strongly about something, but with our team that was a good thing."
Johnson was born Sept. 18, 1954, in Compton, Calif. He played at Pepperdine and was drafted by Seattle in 1976. Johnson was traded to Phoenix in 1980 and Boston in 1983.
He is survived by his wife, Donna, sons Dwayne and Daniel, and a daughter, Denise.
© 2007 The Associated Press
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no history, no symptoms, no angina, then poof, he's gone.
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