35-year-old former All-Star the Jazz gave $22 million has been single-handedly bailing out the team and keeping their season alive

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April 24, 2017 5:25 PM

Joe Johnson has been the hero for the Utah Jazz, twice stepping up in crunch time to deliver game-changing baskets to keep Utah's season alive.

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The Utah Jazz tied up their series with the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday with a trilling 105-98 win.

Once again, the Jazz were saved by a most unlikely hero down the stretch — 35-year-old Joe Johnson.

Johnson has proven crucial for the Jazz this postseason, first hitting the game-winning floater in Game 1, then bailing out the Jazz in a crucial Game 4 with 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting with three assists in the fourth quarter alone.

For Utah, it's looking like the addition of Johnson was one of the smartest offseason signings in a summer full of robust deals for role players. The Jazz offered Johnson, a seven-time All-Star with the Atlanta Hawks and Brooklyn Nets, a two-year, $22 million deal. Johnson was courted by several teams, the Clippers included, but ultimately chose a young, growing Utah team where his experience and on-demand scoring would be vital.

The fit has been perfect. Johnson had a solid, but quiet regular season — nine points, 43% shooting, 41% from downtown, with three rebounds per game off the bench. In the playoffs, he's exploded — 19 points per game on 57% shooting, 35% from three, with three rebounds per game in four games.

In Game 1, as Utah lost starting center Rudy Gobert on the opening play with a knee injury, Johnson came off the bench, sliding into the game a small-ball four, and torching the Clippers with a spread-out offense. His buzzer-beating floater was trademark Johnson — cool and under-control as he got a switch on Jamal Crawford, bullied his way to the rim, then lofted a shot to win the game.

His importance in Game 4 can't be understated. With Gordon Hayward out with the flu, the Jazz offense was desperately in need for an aggressive scorer. The Clippers seemed to pulling away, going up 87-80 before "Iso Joe" went to work on a series of runners and floaters, exploiting mismatches as they came.

Then, finally, as the Clippers began double-teaming Johnson, he made the right plays, hitting Jazz shooters for open threes. Utah had suddenly run away with it.

Jazz coach Quin Snyder effectively described Johnson's game afterward, saying, "

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