Remembering Dennis Johnson: 1954-2007
- Jake C
- Sep 18
- 7 min read
*Cover photo: Dennis Johnson of the Boston Celtics drives on the Los Angeles Lakers’ Magic Johnson in a game at the Boston Garden is Boston, Mass. Photo credit: Mark Lennihan, Associated Press.
One of the best defensive guards in NBA history was born on September 18, 1954.
From San Pedro, Calif., Dennis Johnson attended Dominguez High School, a school that later produced future NBA guys Cedric Ceballos, Tyson Chandler, Tayshaun Prince, and Brandon Jennings.
As a junior at Malibu’s Pepperdine University (Johnson transferred there from LA’s Harbor Junior College), Johnson averaged 15.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. He was named to the 1975-76 All-WAC team and led the Waves to the West Coast Conference title and the NCAA West Region Semifinals. He was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 1981.
Johnson was selected 29th overall in the 1976 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics. In his first two NBA seasons, he averaged 9.2 and 12.7 points per game.
The 1977-78 Sonics made the Finals, where they lost four games to three to the Washington Bullets.
In Game 2 of the first round against the Los Angeles Lakers, Johnson in his second ever postseason game totaled 21 points and 7 rebounds. In Game 1 of the second round against the Portland Trail Blazers, he posted 19 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks in the Sonics’ 104-95 victory. In Game 6 of the series, he scored 20 points. In the final two rounds of playoffs, Johnson posted 20 or more points five times, including 31 points (6 rebounds, 3 assists) in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets, and 33 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 blocks in Game 4 of the Finals.
From 1978-79 to 1981-82, Johnson was an All-Star.
Dennis Johnson Stats: First Four All-Star Seasons
1978-79: 15.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.3 steals, 1.2 blocks, 34.0 minutes, 80 games, 1st team All-Defense
Johnson scored 20 or more points eleven times in the ‘79 playoffs. In Game 1 of the opening round against the Los Angeles Lakers, he posted 26 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, and 3 assists. He registered 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists in Game 4 of that series. In Games 4-7 in the Conference Finals against the Phoenix Suns, Johnson posted 21, 24, 23 (7 rebounds, 6 assists), and 26 points (8 rebounds). In Game 4 of the Finals’ rematch against the Bullets (4-1 Sonics) he posted 32 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 blocks.
1979-80: 19.0 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.8 steals, 5th in MVP voting, 2nd team All-NBA, 1st team All-Defense
The ‘79-‘80 Sonics won 56 games and lost to the Lakers in five games in the Western Conference Finals. Johnson’s highest scoring output of the postseason was 29 points (5 assists, 4 rebounds) in Game 5 against the Lakers.
*Following the ‘79-‘80 season, Johnson was traded to the Phoenix Suns for guard Paul Westphal and draft picks. The ‘79-‘80 Suns had won 55 games, and the ‘80-‘81 team would go on to win 57.
1980-81: 18.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.7 steals, 1st team All-NBA, 1st team All-Defense, 8th in MVP voting
The Suns went 57-25 in the regular season and lost in seven games in the opening round to the Kansas City Kings. Johnson scored 31 points in Game 2 of the series and 28 points (7 rebounds, 5 assists) in Game 7.
1981-82: 19.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.3 steals, 1st team All-Defense
The ‘81-‘82 Suns went 46-36, defeated the Denver Nuggets two games to one in round one and were swept by the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals. Johnson in games two and three of the first round registered 29 points, 8 assists, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals, and 26 points.
Johnson’s final season in Phoenix was 1982-83, a season in which he was not named an all-star but made 1st team All-Defense (14.2 points, 5.0 assists, 4.4 rebounds). The Suns won 53 games and lost to the Denver Nuggets in round one. Johnson in Game 1 of the series posted 28 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists, and 4 steals.
In June of 1983, Johnson was traded to the Boston Celtics for Rick Robey and draft picks.
Johnson joined a perennial contender, a team that had won the 1981 NBA Championship and been to the Eastern Conference Finals and East Semis in the two seasons following the championship. The Celtics of 1983-84 won 62 games and the championship, defeating the Lakers in seven games. Johnson was pivotal in the Finals, scoring 20 or more points five times. He posted 23 in Game 1, 22 points and 14 assists in Game 4, 22 points in Game 5, and 22 points in Game 7. The 1983-84 season produced the first of four consecutive Finals’ appearances for the Celtics. The ‘85 team won 63 games and lost to the Lakers in the championship round in six games. The ‘86 team won 67 games and lost only one home game. This team is considered one of the best in league history. In the Finals, they defeated the Houston Rockets in six games. The ‘87 Celtics won 59 games and lost to the Lakers in six games in the Finals.
In Games 4 and 5 of the ‘85 Finals, Johnson posted 27 points, 12 assists, and 7 rebounds, and 22 points and 17 assists. In Game 1 of the ‘86 Finals, he scored 19 points with 11 rebounds, 8 assists, and 4 steals. He registered 20 points in Game 3 and 22 points in Game 4.
In the ‘87 playoffs, Johnson recorded eleven double-doubles. These included 24 points and 10 rebounds in Game 3 against the Chicago Bulls in round one, 32 points and 14 assists in Game 3 of the second round against the Milwaukee Bucks, 25 points and 14 assists in Game 6 against the Bucks, 25 points and 11 assists in Game 5 of the Finals, and 33 points and 10 rebounds in the clinching Game 6. On May 26 in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Detroit Pistons, Johnson finished off one of the most memorable moments in NBA history, when he caught a pass from Larry Bird underneath the basket and laid the ball in to give the Celtics a one point lead. Bird had stolen the inbound pass from the Pistons’ Isiah Thomas and alertly found Johnson cutting to the basket. Johnny Most’s call “And there’s a steal by Bird! Gets it off to DJ, lays it in!” is one of the iconic calls in sports history.
The 1987-88 Celtics won 57 games and lost the Eastern Conference Finals in six games to the Detroit Pistons. Johnson recorded 22 points and 10 assists in Game 2, 23 points and 8 assists in Game 5, and 17 points and 9 assists in Game 6.
Johnson played in two more postseasons in his career, in 1989 and 1990. In the final playoff game of his career - Game 5 of the ‘90 first round against the New York Knicks, Johnson posted 21 points and 10 assists.
In his time with the Celtics, Johnson was a one-time all-star, in 1984-85 when he averaged 15.7 points, 6.8 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.2 steals. From the 1978-79 season through to 1982-83, he made the All-Defensive 1st team, and from ‘83-‘86 made the second team. He was first team once again for the 1986-87 season.
Johnson retired after the 1989-90 season, with three championships, a Finals’ Most Valuable Player award (1979), five All-Star appearances and nine All-Defensive teams. He is remembered as one of the best defensive guards in NBA history while being the steady and calm presence to the championship Celtics and successful teams of the 1980s. The Celtics retired Johnson’s No. 3 on December 13, 1991.
For his career, he averaged 14.1 points, 5.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.3 steals. He averaged 17.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.4 steals as a Sun, 14.2 points and 1.5 steals as a Sonic, and 12.6 points and 6.4 assists as a Celtic.
In 2010, Johnson was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
From 1993-97, Johnson was an assistant coach with the Celtics. He was head coach of the CBA’s La Crosse Bobcats in 1999-00, and an assistant with the Los Angeles Clippers from 2000-03. For 24 games in the 2002-03 season, Johnson served as the Clippers’ interim head coach. For 2004-05, he was the head coach of the NBA Development League’s Florida Flame.
Johnson was head coach of the Development League’s Austin Toros in 2007 when he suffered a fatal heart attack during a Toros’ practice on February 22, 2007. He was 52 years old.
Upon Johnson’s passing in 2007, former Celtic teammate Danny Ainge said, “He was one of the most underrated players in the history of
the game, in my opinion, and one of the greatest Celtic acquisitions of all time.”
Said his fellow Hall of Fame teammate Bird at one time:
“When we picked up Dennis and saw how good he is, we knew we would win a championship,” said Bird of his Hall of Fame teammate at one time. Bird has also said on multiple occasions that Johnson was the best player that he ever played with.
In a 1986 postgame interview, Bird also said the following:
"I think Dennis Johnson is the best player I've ever played with. He makes everything happen. He really don't shoot the ball extremely well at times, but without Dennis Johnson, we'd be a mediocre team."
On what would have been his 71st birthday, we remember the great Dennis Johnson.
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