 Johnson coaching Alabama in 2016 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1965-03-25)March 25, 1965 (age 60) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Listed height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | St. Augustine (New Orleans, Louisiana) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 1988:undrafted |
| Playing career | 1988–2004 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 15, 6, 5 |
| Coaching career | 2004–2019 |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 1988 | Palm Beach Stingrays |
| 1988–1990 | Seattle SuperSonics |
| 1990 | Denver Nuggets |
| 1991 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 1992 | Houston Rockets |
| 1992–1993 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 1993–1994 | Golden State Warriors |
| 1994–2001 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 2001–2002 | Denver Nuggets |
| 2002–2003 | Dallas Mavericks |
| 2003–2004 | Golden State Warriors |
Coaching | |
| 2004–2005 | Dallas Mavericks (assistant) |
| 2005–2008 | Dallas Mavericks |
| 2010–2012 | New Jersey / Brooklyn Nets |
| 2015–2019 | Alabama |
| Career highlights | |
As player:
As coach: | |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 8,817 (8.4 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 1,751 (1.7 rpg) |
| Assists | 5,846 (5.5 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Avery DeWitt Johnson (born March 25, 1965) is an Americanbasketball television commentator, former player and coach who previously served as head coach of theAlabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team. He is an NBA and college basketball analyst forCBS Sports.
Johnson spent 16 years in theNational Basketball Association as a player, and subsequently served as the head coach of two NBA teams: theDallas Mavericks andNew Jersey/Brooklyn Nets. He led the Mavericks to their firstNBA Finals appearance and to three consecutive 50+ win seasons. During his playing days, Johnson was known as the "Little General" for his small stature (by NBA standards), his leadership skills as apoint guard, and his close friendship with formerSan Antonio Spurs teammateDavid Robinson.
As a high school senior in 1983, Johnson led New Orleans'St. Augustine High School to a 35–0 record and the Class 4A Louisiana State Championship. Johnson matriculated toNew Mexico Junior College before moving on toCameron University, and finallySouthern University, at which in his senior season in 1988 he ledNCAA Division I with 13.3 assists per game, an all-time record as of 2007[update].[1] In that season, he also averaged 11.4 points per game, making him the first men's Division I player ever to average double figures in points and assists in the same season—a feat that was not duplicated untilJason Brickman ofLIU Brooklyn did so in2013–14.[2]
Upongraduation in 1988, Johnson was not selected in theNBA draft.[3]
Johnson spent the summer of 1988 with thePalm Beach Stingrays of theUnited States Basketball League. Johnson also played in six playoff games for the Stingrays.[4]
After the Stingrays, Johnson signed with the Seattle SuperSonics for the 1988–89 season. In 43 games, Johnson averaged 1.6 points and 1.7 assists as a reserve. In the 1989–90 season, Johnson played 53 games with 10 starts for theSeattle SuperSonics. He made 18 assists on January 5, 1990, against the Miami Heat.[4]
On October 24, 1990, the SuperSonics traded Johnson to theDenver Nuggets for a conditional pick in the1997 NBA draft. After playing 21 games, Johnson was waived from the Nuggets in December before signing with theSan Antonio Spurs on January 17, 1991. Johnson played 47 games with seven starts for the Spurs and averaged 9.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 5.4 assists.[4]
In the beginning of the 1991–92 season, Johnson played 20 games and averaged 5.0 points and 6.8 assists for the Spurs before being waived in December. On January 10, 1992, Johnson signed the first of several 10-day contracts with theHouston Rockets that preceded a longer-term contract. Johnson scored a then-career-high 22 points against theMinnesota Timberwolves on January 28.[4]
Signed as an unrestricted free agent, Johnson returned to the Spurs on November 19, 1992. Promoted to starter, Johnson averaged 8.7 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 7.5 assists and improved his field goal percentage to .502 in 75 games. In the playoffs, Johnson averaged 8.2 points and 8.1 assists.[4]
Johnson signed with theGolden State Warriors on October 25, 1993, and was named team captain just nine days into his signing. Starting 70 of 82 games, Johnson reached a new career high 10.9 points per game along with 5.3 assists per game.[4]
.jpg)
Johnson was with the Spurs from 1994 to 2001, and played an integral role on the1998–99 Spurs team that won theNBA championship against theNew York Knicks. Johnson made the go-ahead, championship-clinching shot in Game 5 on a jumper with 47 seconds remaining in the game.[5] The Spurs retired Johnson's number 6 on December 22, 2007.[6] He was also inducted into the San Antonio Sports Hall of Fame on February 20, 2009.[7]
On July 19, 2001, Johnson signed as a free agent with theDenver Nuggets. Johnson played 51 games (13 starts) with the Nuggets and averaged 9.4 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 5.1 assists.[8] The Nuggets traded Johnson,Nick Van Exel,Raef LaFrentz, andTariq Abdul-Wahad to theDallas Mavericks on February 21, 2002, forDonnell Harvey,Tim Hardaway,Juwan Howard, and draft considerations. Johnson played 17 games all as a reserve with the Mavericks for the rest of the season.[8]
In the 2002–03 season, Johnson played in 48 games as a reserve for the Mavericks, averaging 9.0 minutes per game. During the 2003 offseason, the Mavericks traded Johnson, Van Exel,Popeye Jones,Antoine Rigaudeau, andEvan Eschmeyer to the Golden State Warriors forAntawn Jamison,Jiří Welsch,Chris Mills, andDanny Fortson. Johnson ended his NBA career in the 2003–04 season in his second stint with theWarriors. He played 46 games with one start and averaged 4.6 points, 0.7 rebounds, and 2.4 assists.[8]
On October 28, 2004, Johnson retired from playing and signed as an assistant coach with theDallas Mavericks underDon Nelson. Johnson had played under Nelson from 1993 to 1994 and from 2002 to 2003, and it was understood from the beginning that he was being groomed to eventually succeed Nelson ashead coach. His transition from assistant to head coach came five months later on March 19, 2005, after Nelson resigned.
Under Johnson, the Mavericks closed out the2004–05 season with a 16–2 run and a first-round playoff victory over theHouston Rockets, before being eliminated by thePhoenix Suns in the second round of theplayoffs. Johnson was named the April 2005 NBA Coach of the Month, only one month after becoming a head coach for the first time.
The2005–06 season was even more successful for Johnson and was marked by a series of milestones. In November 2005, Johnson won his second NBA Coach of the Month award (which was also his second consecutive award, following the one he had won in April the previous season), making him the first NBA coach to win the award in his first two months as a head coach. On January 28, 2006, when theDallas Mavericks defeated theUtah Jazz, Johnson's record as head coach improved to 50–12, making Johnson the fastest coach to reach 50 wins. In February 2006, he was chosen to coach the2006 NBA All-Star team for theWestern Conference. Although Johnson ultimately led the Mavericks to the second-best record in the Western Conference, the team entered the playoffs as the fourth seed in the West due to the structure of the2006 NBA Playoffs seeding. In April 2006, Johnson was rewarded for his success throughout the season with the 2006NBA Coach of the Year Award.
In June 2006, after defeating theMemphis Grizzlies, the defending championSan Antonio Spurs, and thePhoenix Suns in the first three rounds of the playoffs, Johnson led the Mavericks to their first everNBA Finals appearance. However, the Mavs were defeated insix games by theMiami Heat, losing four straight after winning the first two games.
On December 31, 2006, Johnson became the fastest head coach (at the time) to win 100 games when his squad defeated theDenver Nuggets. This record was later broken byTom Thibodeau and theChicago Bulls. In the2006–07 season, Johnson's Mavericks had the best record in the NBA with 67 wins and entered the playoffs as the top seed. However, his Mavericks lost to the eighth-seededGolden State Warriors, led by former Mavericks head coachDon Nelson, in one of the biggest upsets in recent NBA history.
With the Mavs' win over the Grizzlies on November 18, 2007, Johnson became the fastest coach to reach 150 wins. Following the2007–08 season, the Mavericks under Johnson were eliminated in the first round of theplayoffs for the second year in a row. A day later, on April 30, 2008, Johnson was dismissed as head coach of the Mavericks and replaced by formerNBA Coach of the Year,Rick Carlisle.[9][10][11]
On October 17, 2008, Johnson joinedESPN as a studio analyst. He remained in that role for two seasons, until he received an offer to become head coach of theNew Jersey Nets.[12]
On June 10, 2010, Johnson was hired as head coach of theNew Jersey Nets,[13] which had just finished a dismal2009–10 campaign with a 12–70 record. In his first year as coach of the Nets, the team improved slightly, doubling its win total from the previous season and finishing 24–58. However, the next year saw no such improvement, as his team went 22–44 in thelockout-shortened season.
Johnson remained with the Nets when the team moved to Brooklyn in 2012. He was named theEastern Conference Coach of the Month for October and November 2012 following an 11–4 start to the season. Despite that early success, the team went on to lose ten of its next 13 games, and subsequently Johnson was fired from his head coaching position on December 27, 2012.[14][15]
In 2013, Johnson rejoined ESPN to appear as an analyst onSportsCenter,NBA Coast to Coast, andNBA Tonight.[16]
On April 5, 2015, ESPN reported that Johnson had verbally agreed to become the new head basketball coach at theUniversity of Alabama, replacingAnthony Grant.[17] The following day, the university officially announced Johnson's hiring as the school's 21st men's basketball coach.[18] After losing in the first round of the2019 National Invitation Tournament, Alabama and Johnson agreed to mutually part ways.[19]
Johnson and his wife Cassandra have two children, Avery Jr. and Christianne.[20] Avery Jr. played for the Alabama basketball team, coached by his father.[21] Johnson is aChristian.[22] He had a very memorable cameo in the movieEddie even being referred to byWhoopi Goldberg as "looking like a little roach".[23]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| † | Won anNBA championship | * | Led the league |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988–89 | Seattle | 43 | 0 | 6.8 | .349 | .111 | .563 | .6 | 1.7 | .5 | .1 | 1.6 |
| 1989–90 | Seattle | 53 | 10 | 10.8 | .387 | .250 | .725 | .8 | 3.1 | .5 | .0 | 2.6 |
| 1990–91 | Denver | 21 | 4 | 10.3 | .426 | .000 | .656 | 1.0 | 3.7 | .7 | .1 | 3.8 |
| San Antonio | 47 | 10 | 15.8 | .483 | .200 | .691 | 1.2 | 3.3 | .7 | .0 | 5.1 | |
| 1991–92 | San Antonio | 20 | 14 | 23.3 | .509 | .200 | .750 | 1.8 | 5.0 | 1.1 | .2 | 6.8 |
| Houston | 49 | 1 | 15.8 | .464 | .300 | .609 | .9 | 3.4 | .8 | .1 | 5.1 | |
| 1992–93 | San Antonio | 75 | 49 | 27.1 | .502 | .000 | .791 | 1.9 | 7.5 | 1.1 | .2 | 8.7 |
| 1993–94 | Golden State | 82 | 70 | 28.4 | .492 | .000 | .704 | 2.1 | 5.3 | 1.4 | .1 | 10.9 |
| 1994–95 | San Antonio | 82* | 82* | 36.7 | .519 | .136 | .685 | 2.5 | 8.2 | 1.4 | .2 | 13.4 |
| 1995–96 | San Antonio | 82 | 82* | 37.6 | .494 | .194 | .721 | 2.5 | 9.6 | 1.5 | .3 | 13.1 |
| 1996–97 | San Antonio | 76 | 76 | 32.5 | .477 | .231 | .690 | 1.9 | 6.8 | 1.3 | .2 | 10.5 |
| 1997–98 | San Antonio | 75 | 73 | 35.7 | .478 | .154 | .726 | 2.0 | 7.9 | 1.1 | .2 | 10.2 |
| 1998–99† | San Antonio | 50* | 50* | 33.4 | .473 | .083 | .568 | 2.4 | 7.4 | 1.0 | .2 | 9.7 |
| 1999–00 | San Antonio | 82 | 82* | 31.4 | .473 | .111 | .735 | 1.9 | 6.0 | .9 | .2 | 11.2 |
| 2000–01 | San Antonio | 55 | 20 | 23.5 | .447 | .167 | .683 | 1.5 | 4.3 | .6 | .1 | 5.6 |
| 2001–02 | Denver | 51 | 13 | 23.5 | .486 | .000 | .747 | 1.3 | 5.1 | .7 | .2 | 9.4 |
| Dallas | 17 | 0 | 8.9 | .429 | — | .706 | .3 | 1.6 | .3 | .1 | 3.2 | |
| 2002–03 | Dallas | 48 | 0 | 9.0 | .420 | .000 | .769 | .6 | 1.3 | .3 | .0 | 3.3 |
| 2003–04 | Golden State | 46 | 1 | 13.8 | .402 | .000 | .667 | .7 | 2.4 | .6 | .1 | 4.6 |
| Career | 1,054 | 637 | 25.3 | .479 | .145 | .706 | 1.7 | 5.5 | 1.0 | .1 | 8.4 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Seattle | 6 | 0 | 5.2 | .417 | .000 | .500 | .7 | .8 | .7 | .0 | 1.8 |
| 1991 | San Antonio | 3 | 0 | 6.3 | .000 | .000 | 1.000 | .0 | 1.3 | .3 | .0 | .7 |
| 1993 | San Antonio | 10 | 10 | 31.4 | .514 | .000 | .714 | 3.1 | 8.1 | 1.0 | .1 | 8.2 |
| 1994 | Golden State | 3 | 0 | 13.7 | .529 | .000 | — | 1.0 | 3.3 | 1.3 | .3 | 6.0 |
| 1995 | San Antonio | 15 | 15 | 38.3 | .517 | .000 | .621 | 2.1 | 8.3 | 1.3 | .4 | 14.5 |
| 1996 | San Antonio | 10 | 10 | 40.7 | .430 | .000 | .704 | 3.6 | 9.4 | 2.0 | .1 | 12.3 |
| 1998 | San Antonio | 9 | 9 | 38.0 | .604 | .000 | .667 | 1.4 | 6.1 | 1.0 | .0 | 17.3 |
| 1999† | San Antonio | 17 | 17 | 38.4 | .487 | .333 | .681 | 2.5 | 7.4 | 1.2 | .1 | 12.6 |
| 2000 | San Antonio | 4 | 4 | 36.0 | .452 | — | .714 | 2.3 | 5.3 | 1.0 | .0 | 12.0 |
| 2001 | San Antonio | 13 | 0 | 21.6 | .386 | .000 | .533 | 1.2 | 3.2 | .8 | .1 | 5.8 |
| Career | 90 | 65 | 31.2 | .486 | .063 | .661 | 2.1 | 6.2 | 1.1 | .1 | 10.5 | |
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas | 2004–05 | 18 | 16 | 2 | .889 | 2nd inSouthwest | 13 | 6 | 7 | .462 | Lost inConference semifinals |
| Dallas | 2005–06 | 82 | 60 | 22 | .732 | 2nd in Southwest | 23 | 14 | 9 | .609 | Lost inNBA Finals |
| Dallas | 2006–07 | 82 | 67 | 15 | .817 | 1st in Southwest | 6 | 2 | 4 | .333 | Lost infirst round |
| Dallas | 2007–08 | 82 | 51 | 31 | .622 | 4th in Southwest | 5 | 1 | 4 | .200 | Lost infirst round |
| New Jersey | 2010–11 | 82 | 24 | 58 | .293 | 4th inAtlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| New Jersey | 2011–12 | 66 | 22 | 44 | .333 | 5th in Atlantic | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Brooklyn | 2012–13 | 28 | 14 | 14 | .500 | (fired) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Career | 440 | 254 | 186 | .577 | 47 | 23 | 24 | .489 | |||
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama Crimson Tide(Southeastern Conference)(2015–2019) | |||||||||
| 2015–16 | Alabama | 18–15 | 8–10 | 10th | NIT First Round | ||||
| 2016–17 | Alabama | 19–15 | 10–8 | T–5th | NIT First Round | ||||
| 2017–18 | Alabama | 20–16 | 8–10 | T–9th | NCAA Division I Round of 32 | ||||
| 2018–19 | Alabama | 18–16 | 8–10 | T–9th | NIT First Round | ||||
| Alabama: | 75–62 (.547) | 34–38 (.472) | |||||||
| Total: | 75–62 (.547) | ||||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |