Johnson wore No. 15 with distinction
Fan favourite a heart and soul guy with the Raptors for six seasons
Fifteen is perhaps the most complicated number in Toronto Raptors history. Obviously, that starts with Vince Carter. The greatest player in the franchise’s two decades conjures up a range of emotions: joy, awe, disappointment and frustration.
The man to replace him wearing the number, Jorge Garbajosa, was Carter’s antithesis. He was a representation of the next wave of hope for the Raptors. Garbajosa was unheralded, an import from Spain who was a mystery to NBA fans. Like the 2006-07 Raptors, Garbajosa proved to be resourceful, tough and likable. When he broke his fibula, suffering a displaced ankle and ligament damage in the process, it doubled as the most gruesome injury the franchise has ever seen and proof that the Raptors might be mildly cursed.
In relative obscurity, Amir Johnson came to Toronto in the summer of 2009. Johnson spent his formative years as an apprentice to Ben and Rasheed Wallace in Detroit. However, there was little evidence that he could be more than a bit player — perhaps at the end of a rotation — in the league.
In his final year with the Pistons, Johnson started 24 games. That was also the year that Detroit lost its status as one of the Eastern conference’s elite teams. Johnson committed fouls at a prodigious rate, showed little in the way of passing skills and, essentially, looked like just another raw power forward.
The Pistons moved Johnson to Milwaukee, with the Bucks quickly rerouting him to Toronto for two reserves. It was a nothing trade in August, the league’s dead period. That it turned out to be one of the best moves that the Raptors have ever made is still astounding.
Johnson was in Toronto for six seasons, making him the longesttenured Raptor along with DeMar DeRozan, right up until Wednesday. Johnson signed a two-year, $24 million US contract with Boston. It was not a surprise. The Raptors had other priorities this summer, and Johnson was always likely to be a necessary sacrifice. Still, his departure is tinged with sadness, even if it is understandable.
In a way, Johnson is lucky that he hit his prime at the same time that advanced statistics became more accessible. Johnson never averaged more than 10.4 points or 7.5 rebounds per game in any of his seasons in Toronto. Yet, it became increasingly easy to understand his value, even beyond nebulous concepts like effort and desire.
Team-based statistics consistently showed him as a boon to the Raptors’ fortunes, which generally lagged when he was here (and all other times, too). Video showed that Johnson excelled in some of the sport’s finer arts: providing help defence, catching the ball in traffic and setting screens.