Tag: BJ Johnson

NBA hardship contracts: Top performances by 10-day signees

Rookie Wire took a look at the top performances by players on 10-day hardship contracts.

The month of December proved to be a rather difficult time for teams and players alike in the NBA after dealing with the latest outbreak of the coronavirus.

Over 200 players entered the health and safety protocol in December and 11 games were postponed as a result of the outbreak. Teams have called up nearly 100 players from the NBA G League to replace those in the protocol, creating opportunities for under-the-radar guys.

With several roster players sidelined in the protocol, teams relied on those call-ups to field teams and avoid further postponements. Several players signed via hardship exception took advantage of the opportunity and made a name for themselves.

The performances by those players will go a long way in securing long-term contracts in the NBA. The latest obstacle surrounding the coronavirus certainly proved to be difficult but one uplifting consequence is seeing several players realizing the opportunity of a lifetime.

With most teams through the worst of the latest coronavirus outbreak, Rookie Wire took a look at some of the top performances by players signed via hardship contracts. We will continue to update this list with each notable outing.

Note: List current through games played on Jan. 4

Explaining the NBA’s hardship exception and the free agents who signed as replacement players

Explaining what hardship exceptions and replacement players mean as COVID-19 protocols hit the NBA.

As the omicron variant of COVID-19 continues to spread, the NBA has required a large share of “replacement players” to fill in for the players who are in health and safety protocols. And so far, more than 100 players have reportedly entered the league’s health and safety protocols so far this month, per ESPN’s Baxter Holmes.

But how exactly do the “replacement players” work?

Essentially, the NBA’s hardship exception allows teams to exceed the 15-man roster limit if more than three players on the roster are each going to miss extended time due to illness or injury. Typically, teams weren’t allowed to apply for the hardship exception before Jan. 5.

But starting last season, the league changed the policy to allow earlier exceptions. And as of earlier this week, effective Dec. 19 until Jan. 19, the NBA is allowing teams to sign one replacement player for each player on their roster who tests positive for COVID-19.

While there are some big names (e.g. Isaiah Thomas, Lance Stephenson, CJ Miles) who have signed as replacement players, there are lots of promising young NBA hopefuls who are hoping to use this opportunity as a chance to stick around the league.

Not all of the players below were signed through hardship exceptions and some transactions (e.g. DeMarcus Cousins and Wesley Matthews to the Milwaukee Bucks) may have happened anyway during a normal season.

But below, based on the NBA’s transaction log and reporting from the league’s top insiders, you can find a live tracker of all the players who have signed new deals with NBA teams over the course of the past month.

Veteran Rockets scout B.J. Johnson dies in bicycle accident

“B.J. was a standup and genuine human, and a basketball purist all over the world,” The Athletic’s Shams Charania wrote on Twitter.

Veteran Houston Rockets scout Brent ‘B.J.’ Johnson passed away Thursday night, as first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic.

“B.J. was a standup and genuine human, and a basketball purist all over the world,” Charania wrote on Twitter.

“I’m stunned. Absolutely stunned,” added Marc J. Spears of ESPN’s The Undefeated. “B.J. was one of the most generous, caring, and humorous people I ever met with one of the greatest basketball IQs to boot. My prayers and condolences to his wife and his children.”

Rockets forward and native Houstonian Danuel House Jr. shared the news on Twitter with several sad emojis.

Per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, the 65-year-old Johnson died in a bicycle accident. An avid rider, he typically rode his bike for approximately 30 miles per day, according to Feigen.

“He was riding his bike and hit a culvert,” said Johnson’s wife, Claudette. “There was construction. They are thinking he fell forward and broke his neck, because there was no blood.”

Johnson had worked in Houston’s basketball operations department since the 1994-95 championship season, which was then run by head coach Rudy Tomjanovich and general manager Carroll Dawson. He remained with the department through numerous coaching and leadership changes, primarily working to scout college and NBA players.

Johnson leaves behind a son and two stepchildren.

See below for a sampling of the immediate social media reactions from many connected with the Rockets and the broader NBA community.