Opinion: The Atlanta Hawks Should Bring Back This 7x All-Star

On Tuesday, Joe Johnson still remains a free agent. The 41-year-old played in one game for the Boston Celtics last season, and I think that the Atlanta Hawks should consider adding him to their roster.

Joe Johnson has been one of the quietest stars in the history of the NBA. 

The casual fan probably does not realize that he has made seven All-Star Games, and from 2007-12 (with the Atlanta Hawks) he made the All-Star Game in six consecutive seasons. 

He had previously been out of the NBA for nearly four seasons, but this past year he played in one game for the Boston Celtics. 

Looked like Joe Johnson was pretty emotional before the game tonight, per the Celtics’ IG story.

Really awesome that he came in and sunk his first jumper back in the NBA. pic.twitter.com/BZs3pt2F2X

— Chris Grenham (@chrisgrenham) December 23, 2021

The best years of his career came with the Hawks, where he averaged 20.9 points per contest in 508 regular season games.

They also made the NBA Playoffs in five out of those seven seasons.

I believe that the Atlanta Hawks should bring him back for next season.

On Tuesday, September 13, he remains a free agent.

In 2019 and 2020, the Hawks had a 42-year-old and 43-year-old Vince Carter.

The eight-time NBA All-Star averaged 6.3 points per contest in 136 games with the franchise, but his impact was more so as a leader. 

Vince Carter hit 4 threes in the last 5 mins of the half 🔥

He's made more career threes than the entire Hawks roster combined 😮 pic.twitter.com/mAHaa0kQ4I

— ESPN (@espn) October 17, 2019

Johnson could play a similar role.

Over the summer, he played in AEBL, a pro-am league in Atlanta, and led his team, Iso Yoga, to the championship. 

He still lives in Atlanta, and is one of the most popular players in the history of the franchise. 

On top of all of that, he could probably still help out the team on the court in a few minutes per game. 

The 41-year-old has played in 1,277 regular season games and 120 playoff games over 18 seasons.