During a timeout during the first quarter of Wednesday’s game against the Boston Celtics, the Toronto Raptors played a tribute video to Amir Johnson.
It’s Johnson’s first game back at the Air Canada Centre since leaving as a free agent this offseason. In his six years with the organization, Johnson became the heart of the franchise, a massive fan-favorite, a fixture in the Toronto community, and one of my personal all-time favorite Raptors. He’s the rare breed who revealed all of his personality for fans and let his walls down entirely, and the fan base embraced every bit of him, as they should have. The decision to let him walk made basketball sense, but it was a tough one for every other reason.
The crowd came correct with a standing ovation for Johnson, and hopefully he knows just how much he’s missed and appreciated.
standing o for amir pic.twitter.com/1cqTklK0ey
— James Herbert (@outsidethenba) January 21, 2016
Standing ovation for Amir Johnson pic.twitter.com/F9TrQMba4v
— Melissa Couto (@ThrowinSmoke) January 21, 2016
I doubt anyone needs a refresher on how great a Raptor he was or what he meant to the franchise and fan base, but if so, go back and read William Lou’s goodbye to him from this summer.
He tried to pull the chair on a Luis Scola post-up in the first quarter, which is perfect.
