Following most of Toronto’s games this season, Amir Johnson has found himself wrapped in ice.
It has been a regular occurrence to walk into the locker room to see an ice pack on his left shoulder and for him to be soaking his feet and ankles in a big bucket of ice and water.
Then, when he’s done icing and talking with the media, he will usually limp to the shower.
There was speculation last month among the media that Johnson would – or should – take a game or two off to rest his body during a stretch of easily winnable home games against Denver, Indiana and Orlando.
Dwane Casey quickly dismissed that idea when it was brought up during one of his pre-game media scrums in December. Partially because the team needed Johnson’s grit, but probably just as likely that he wouldn’t want to shut it down for a game.
“For me, if it’s really devastating I will sit out,” Johnson told me. “If not, I keep on playing. That’s just what my attitude is.”
Johnson started every game for Toronto in December but he only averaged 27.4 minutes. His scoring (9.9 points per game) and his rebounding (6.1) weren’t flashy.
All of this while Patrick Patterson took off averaging 10.6 points while shooting 55% from the field and 52% from beyond the arc.
Battling through injuries is something Johnson should be credited for; it shouldn’t be an excuse to rip him for the subsequent dips in his stats or even expect his removal from Toronto’s starting five.
Despite playing banged up all season, Johnson is still the heart and soul of this team and a player his teammates rally around.
“He’s a big piece for our team,” Vasquez glowed. “He’s our x-factor. He does that little things that don’t always show up in the stats. He means so much to us. We love him. That’s our brother. We know what he’s bringing to the table every night.”
Johnson is a player Dwane Casey has a ton of respect and admiration for because of all the intangibles he brings to the team.
“His point per possession the last seven minutes of the game are some of the tops on our team offensively and defensively,” Casey explained to me.
“He’s a beneficiary of rolling to the bucket and teams double-teaming Kyle (Lowry), Lou (Williams) or DeMar (DeRozan). Going to the bucket he gets offensive boards and defensively he’s one of our best rotators, especially if we are applying pressure in the game.”
There is a group of fans that are quick to praise Johnson; something that I discovered and appreciated after writing some Quick Reactions for Raptors Republic last month.
It appears that respect is growing past Toronto’s locker room and a few hardcore fans into the mainstream media, too.
Earlier this season a writer for ESPN wrote an article that listed Johnson as one of the most under-rated players in the NBA.
While his traditional stats like scoring and rebounding aren’t flashy, Johnson is making his mark on the court and in the stat sheet while using non-traditional stats. This season he has a plus/minus of +133 for the season.
Or, when you break that down per game, it’s 4.3 per game.
While his scoring and rebounding may be down, he’s still making a big impact on the game when he’s on the court.
It’s a shame more fans aren’t able to look beyond traditional stats to see all the Amir Johnson brings to the Toronto Raptors.
At least Johnson’s coaches and teammates have his back.
