NBA (former) star Joe Johnson led his Brooklyn Nets to an impressive win over the Sacramento Kings Friday night, 128-119. It was so good, in fact, that he hasn't had this huge of game since the 2009-10 season, nearly six full years ago, back when he was with the Atlanta Hawks.
How well did he do tonight?
Johnson scored 27 points (first time over 22 all season) on an extremely efficient 11-of-16 from the floor, including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc. But he also had a double-double in this one, racking up 11 assists, and added six rebounds, two steals and a block for good measure.
The last time Johnson had a game in which he scored at least 25 points and dished 10 assists was all the way back in February of 2010; February 26, to be exact.
In that game against the Dallas Mavericks, Johnson was on fire, as he put up 27 points (11-of-21 FG, 2-of-6 3PT), 10 assists, five rebounds, one steal and a block.
Unfortunately, he wasn't as lucky in that one, as his Hawks fell 111-103 in overtime thanks to another fantastic player: Dirk Nowitzki. The European dominated with a 37-point outburst, piling up nine boards and four assists as well. That was back when Jason Kidd, Jason Terry and Shawn Marion were also on the team, and they all pitched in with effective performances.
The Nets won tonight, though -- only their 13th win on the season, as they still own the third-worst record in the NBA.
It's games like these, however, that keep the fans from giving up on the team. Yes, everyone knows it's going to be a process for the Nets to get back to winning once again, but enjoying these anomalies from former NBA stars like Johnson is still enjoyable. He had a throwback performance tonight, and there's nothing wrong with that at all. Glad to see him put some big numbers, especially since it may be one of the final few in a Nets jersey for him.
