Philadelphia 76ers: Amir Johnson is still kickin’ in the G-League

In 2017, the Philadelphia 76ers added two big-time performers in free agency: J.J. Redick and Amir Johnson.

Now at the time, this was a pretty big deal; the Sixers had spent the last four seasons cycling through dozens of young players in their pursuit of premium draft picks and on paper, the duo perfectly filled a pair of needs in their post-process March back to prominence.

Even if neither ultimately hit, the idea of adding two veteran performers signified a clear change in mindset for the franchise, and folks were stoked as all heck to see it happen.

Fortunately, the addition of Redick was a resounding success, as his game perfectly complemented both Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, and helped to raise the team’s offensive floor considerably. While his run with the team ended with a whimper, not a roar, as Elton Brand decided that having an elite perimeter shooter was a luxury he didn’t want to afford, it’s hard to look at Redick’s time in Philly as anything but a success.

And as for Johnson? Well, while his run in South Philly wasn’t quite as successful, he still put in work, helped to mentor Embiid, and was even afforded a chance to play in the G-League at the end of his final season in the NBA in order to finish out his run on the court instead of the bench.

But, curiously enough, that isn’t the end of Amir Johnson’s time in the G-League. No, Johnson has actually been a member of the G-League team Ignite since 2020, where he’s helped to usher along young players like Jalen Green, Jaden Hardy, and Michael Foster Jr., who signed a UDFA deal with the Philadelphia 76ers after the 2022 NBA Draft.

Amir Johnson helped the Philadelphia 76ers’ new UDFA.

When the G-League announced the addition of a new team, called the Ignite, which wouldn’t be affiliated with any of the NBA’s 30 teams, it drew mixed reactions. While the prospects of adding another pathway for players after high school was much appreciated, as most folks save hardcore college hoop kids aren’t particularly into the one-and-done pipeline, would a team of 18-year-olds be able to compete with the rest of the G-League, let alone develop in their pre-NBA gap year?

With big time high school recruits like Jalen Green signing to the team, the league higher-ups knew what they needed to do; they needed to gather some veteran players to come and show the ropes of being a professional basketball player.

Enter Amir Johnson, who, alongside the likes of C.J. Miles, officially joined the team as quasi-player-coaches. While Johnson and company would still appear in games, averaging single-digit minutes, their main responsibility was to shepherd along this new crop of players, give them the business in practice, and answer any questions that may come up along the way.

Clearly, this philosophy has worked, as the Ignite have produced six drafted players since 2021 and have amassed another strong recruit class heading into the fall. If Michael Foster Jr. makes the Sixers’ roster this fall, Johnson will at least be partially responsible for his development, as the duo surely squared off in practice over the past season.

So there you go; bet you didn’t expect to read a story about Amir Johnson playing basketball three years after his time with the Philadelphia 76ers came to an end. You learn something new every day.