The Cleveland Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks have reportedly expressed strong interest in acquiring Joe Johnson after the Brooklyn Nets reached a buyout agreement with the veteran shooting guard on Thursday.
Even before the Nets and Johnson agreed to part ways, Chris Haynes of Cleveland.com has already revealed that the Cavaliers are the frontrunners to sign the former All-Star once he becomes a free agent.
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Following the buyout, ESPN reported that the Cavaliers are confident that Johnson will eventually decide to join LeBron James in Cleveland in the hope of winning his first NBA title. Reports also indicated that Johnson developed a strong relationship with Cavaliers general manager David Griffin during their days with the Phoenix Suns.
However, the Hawks are also planning to make a strong push to acquire Johnson to strengthen their roster heading into the 2016 NBA Playoffs. Johnson played seven seasons in Atlanta before moving to the Nets in 2012. The Hawks are currently in seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings.
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Aside from the Cavaliers and the Hawks, other playoff teams like the Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets, Miami Heat, Oklahoma City Thunder and Toronto Raptors are also eyeing Johnson. The 34-year-old shooting guard will clear waivers and will be eligible to sign with a new team 5 p.m. ET on Saturday.
New Nets general manager Sean Marks revealed that Johnson gave up $3 million of his $24.9 million salary this season. Marks said that Johnson is serious in going to a title contender, which was also the reason why Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov agreed to the buyout.
"I know [Prokhorov] is very fond of Joe, and it's hard to see him leave, and he would've loved for Joe to have stuck around and been a Net for the rest of this season and beyond," Marks told ESPN. "But I think he also realizes the fair thing for Joe would be [for him] to try to get a chance at a championship."
Johnson, who is playing in his 15th year in the league, averaged 11.8 points on top of 4.1 assists and 3.9 rebounds in 57 games with the Nets this season.
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