Jacari McRae | October 12th, 2019
Miami Heat forward James Johnson reported back to the Heat on Friday after being away from the team for more than a week, according to Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Johnson was banished from the team’s training camp earlier this month after he reportedly failed to meet the team’s conditioning standards. Johnson’s agent Mark Bartelstein recently stated that Johnson passed his conditioning test but had failed to meet the weight requirements set by the team. Regardless of what happened, the 32-year-old is ready to move forward.
“It was Day 1 of earning my respect back,” Johnson said, via Sun Sentinel. “… It’s good to be back home. I got exactly what I needed; I got exactly what I needed to hear. Hopefully I can put it all behind me after this.”
Johnson is expected to compete for frontcourt minutes in the Heat’s rotation. When healthy, Johnson provides the Heat with an additional playmaker capable of creating open looks for teammates. At 6-foot-9 with good lateral quickness, Johnson has the size and athleticism to defend multiple positions. While Johnson is coming off his worst season with the Heat, they expect Johnson to be back to his usual self.
“It’s good to have him back and hopefully everything is behind us now,” Erik Spoelstra said. “It’s not a shock to him what our system is.”
Johnson averaged 7.8 points and 3.2 rebounds per game in 55 games for the Heat last season.
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