NBA: Assessing what remains of the buyout market

Tyler Johnson

Ever since Steve Nash left, the Suns haven’t had many fruitful experiences with the point guards they’ve brought to town. Save for Goran Dragic, most of them have been short-term experiments that have failed spectacularly. Say what you want about Ricky Rubio and all of his faults, but he’s easily the most competent guy who’s manned that position since Dragic’s departure.

Last year, before Rubio arrived, Johnson served as the de-facto point guard for this moribund franchise after he was sent there in a midseason trade. He definitely wasn’t good, but he wasn’t awful either. (I know, a ringing endorsement.) But let the pursuit of Reggie Jackson be a lesson – if he can drum up serious interest on the buyout market, Johnson can too!

Johnson played a critical bench role for two Heat teams, in 2016-17 and 2017-18, shooting roughly 37 percent from deep and playing tough, feisty defense. He is prone to some wild, reckless stretches, but it’s the price you pay for some of the good things he can do on the court.

Once again, the Sixers could probably use a little more depth in the backcourt, making Johnson a fit there. At the very least, he’s an upgrade over Raul Neto, who coach Brett Brown was playing in crunch time just last week. Elsewhere, the Lakers are in a similar, but a less dire situation, in that they don’t have many guys on their bench who can create their own shot. The Markieff Morris addition, while significant in its own right, won’t help with that problem.

Much like Harkless, I’m not even sure Johnson will make it to the buyout market, but if he does, he could find himself in a critical playoff spot in short order.