Nick Johnson, a 6’3″ guard for Findlay Prep, is the nephew of the late Dennis Johnson, and the son of Joey Johnson, a former Arizone State standout and a California playground legend. Joey reportedly had a 52-inch vertical leap.

“I thought for someone to jump like that didn’t make sense for the normal mechanics of the human body,” Bill Lee, former Lynnwood HS coach, told ESPN Rise.  ”Like he was a danger or could hurt himself jumping that high.”

Nick has inherited his father’s outstanding leaping ability, along with the skills to become a top-flight college player . Nick, the 45th ranked player in his class according to Rivals.com, has recently committed to play his college basketball for Sean Miller and the Arizona Wildcats.

On Friday, we dedicated the highlight reel of the day to Dennis Johnson, who was being posthumously inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Today, we dedicate the highlight reel of the day to the rest of players who were inducted along with DJ. Unfortunately, I was unable to find any clips of Maciel “Ubiritan” Pereira, so instead I included a clip of Brazilian NBA star, Leandro Barbosa speaking about Pereira.

Scottie Pippen:

Karl Malone:

Gus Johnson:

Barbosa on Maciel Pereira:

Intermingling tears of sadness and tears of joy filled up inside Gary Johnson as he gave the Basketball Hall of Fame acceptance speech in place of his dead brother, Dennis Johnson, who should have given the speech himself, years ago. Gary Johnson gave thanks to everyone who had a positive impact on his brother’s life, gratefully acknowledging family members, former coaches, those who believed in Dennis.

But the regret and pain was evident on Gary’s face as well. He didn’t want to, shouldn’t have been the one speaking at the podium. He said he wasn’t a public speaker, but what he meant was, this was Dennis’ speech to give. Read more »

In honor of Dennis Johnson’s posthumous entry into the Basketball Hall of Fame, we present to you this tribute to the late, great DJ. It’s a bittersweet day for Celtics Town. We’re ecstatic that DJ is finally getting his due as a player, but he should have been elected years ago, when he would have been around to enjoy the celebration.

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Tonight, Johnson takes his rightful place alongside a few of his teammates.

There is no greater compliment I can give a basketball player than to say that, when I have a son, I hope he grows up to play like Player X. Which brings me to Dennis Johnson. A rugged defender. Selfless. Heady. Clutch. All about winning. In Larry Bird’s words, the best player Bird ever played with. Yeah, when I have a son (who will obviously be a stud), I’ll be a proud man if he ever learns to play the game like DJ.

I could write a million words about Johnson’s career and not do him justice, so I’ll turn it over to Bob Ryan. I would quote the piece, but it’s too good. Just do yourself a favor and go read it.

I can only wish DJ were alive to see himself inducted into the Hall of Fame. But if there is a God, if there is a place somewhere above earth where we all go when life as we know it is done, I imagine DJ will be there, looking down on Springfield, MA with his freckled face spread in a big ole grin.

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Dennis has earned his place in Springfield beside his two teammates.

I was going to write an article about Dennis Johnson, but when Bob Ryan is on top of his game there isn’t anything you can write that will shed any more light on the story. And Ryan absolutely brought his ‘A’ game when he penned his piece about Johnson. Here’s a little excerpt.

But as is the case with any legitimately great player, his essence cannot be gleaned from a résumé. As much as any great player I can think of, it can truly be said that there was no one like him.

It wasn’t one thing; it was everything. Ninth of 16 children. A nobody coming out of high school. Drove a forklift before going to junior college. Second-round Seattle pick out of Pepperdine who caught the eye of coach Bill Russell. Zero-for-14 in Game 7 of the 1978 Finals as the Sonics lost to Washington and the aforementioned MVP a year later. Successful three-year tenure in Phoenix, but saddled with label of being a handful. Traded to Boston for Rick Robey (there were other minor matters).

The red hair. The freckles. The classic two-guard body. The conversion to nominal floor leader, although you’d never really confuse him with a point guard. The cheeks puffing out, a la Dizzy Gillespie, as he brought the ball upcourt. Those deadly poke-check steals. The power drives. The line-drive jumpers. The dribbling of the basketball to signify how many years he’d been in the league before every foul shot. The off-the-dribble, halfcourt bullets to a cutting Bird along the baseline. The overdue switch to guard Magic Johnson after Game 3 of the 1984 Finals, after which he neutralized him while scoring 22, 22, 20, 22 points in Games 4, 5, 6, and 7, respectively. And, yes, the nights he’d occasionally take off, always doing it for a home game against a team the Celtics were going to defeat and always having the courtesy to announce his intentions internally beforehand. That’s part of the Dennis Johnson package, too.

It’s a masterpiece, so please check it out.

As for Bird, he was pumped about Johnson’s election.

“It’s very special. We’ve been waiting for this day for a long time,” he said. “He’s the best player I ever played with.”

And he’s finally in the Hall of Fame. Congrats, DJ. You should have been inducted years ago.