MVPs: 0. Finals MVPs: 1. All-NBA 1st Team: 1. 2nd Team: 1. All Star: 5. MVP: 0.
Defensive POY: 0. All-Defense 1st Team: 6. 2nd Team: 3.
Career Averages: 14 PPG/ 4 RPG/ 5 APG/ 1.3 SPG/ .6 BPG/ .448 eFG%/ .797 FT%.
Best Season: 19/ 5/ 5/ 1.3/ .7/ .473/ .806 (1981-82).
Postseason Averages: 17 PPG/ 4 RPG/ 6 APG/ 1.4 SPG/ .6 BPG/ .443 eFG%/ .802 FT%.
Best Postseason: 21/ 6/ 4/ 1.6/ 1.5/ .450/ .771 (1979).
Championships: 3 (#3 player on 1, #4 player on 1, #5 player on 1). Runner-ups: 3 (#2 player on 1, #4 player on 1, #5 player on 1).
Why he's below Dave DeBusschere: It's a little tough to judge which player was the better defender, but I'd lean toward DeBusschere because he made just as many 1st Team All-Defenses (6) as Johnson even though the award only existed for 6 years of his career. Johnson also was a guard, which has been a little weaker on defense historically than forward. I also have DeBusschere rated as the 3rd best player on the Knicks but Johnson only the 4th best player on the Celtics. In the battle of my two highest ranked "role players," I think DeBusschere has a tiny edge.
Why he's above the rest: Unlike DeBusschere, Johnson had an impactful career before his joined a dynasty at the end of his career. He won Finals MVP for Seattle in 1979, averaging 21 PPG in the postseason and leading his team in blocked shots despite being a guard (he's #2 in career blocks as a guard, behind only Dwyane Wade). In his prime with the Sonics and Suns, Johnson finished in the top-10 in MVP voting twice and made a 1st Team All-NBA. He was definitely more than a role player in the first phase of his career before settling in with Boston and helping them get past the 76ers and Lakers. As I said in the previous paragraph, Johnson is only a tiny bit behind DeBusschere overall.
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