Tyler Johnson (basketball)


Tyler Ryan Johnson is an American professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association. He played college basketball for Fresno State University.

College career

In his four-year career at Fresno State University, Johnson appeared in 127 games and averaged 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 27.9 minutes per game while shooting 45.6 percent from the field, 37.4 percent from three-point range and 71.6 percent from the free-throw line. He finished his career ranked number 16 on Fresno State's all-time scoring list with 1,346 career points. As a senior, he was named to the All-Mountain West Conference second team and shot 43.2 percent from three-point range, the sixth-highest single-season three-point field goal percentage in school history.

Professional career

Miami Heat (2014–2019)

After going undrafted in the 2014 NBA draft, Johnson joined the Miami Heat for the 2014 NBA Summer League. On August 7, 2014, he signed with the Heat, but was later waived by the team on October 25. On November 3, he was acquired by the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League as an affiliate player of the Heat.
On January 12, 2015, Johnson signed a 10-day contract with the Heat. Three days later, he made his NBA debut against the Golden State Warriors, appearing for 1:44 minutes and scoring two points on a pair of free throws. On January 22, the Heat decided to not retain Johnson after his contract expired and two days later, he returned to the Skyforce. He later re-joined the Heat on January 29 as he signed another 10-day contract with the team. On February 8, he signed a two-year deal with the Heat. On March 2, he had a season-best game with 26 points and 4 steals in a 115–98 win over the Phoenix Suns. Five days later, he scored 24 points and played in a career-high 44 minutes off the bench as he helped the Heat defeat the Sacramento Kings, 114–109. He topped that minutes mark by playing in all 48 minutes of the Heat's season finale win over the Philadelphia 76ers.
On July 9, 2015, Johnson was sidelined for six weeks with a broken jaw that he sustained while playing for the Heat during the 2015 NBA Summer League. On December 9, 2015, he scored a season-high 20 points in a loss to the Charlotte Hornets. He later missed eight games during December with a shoulder injury. Johnson fought through his left shoulder pain during January before missing the team's final two games of the month after succumbing to the pain. After initially trying to avoid surgery, Johnson ultimately gave into the idea on February 1, 2016, a procedure that ruled him out for three months. He returned to action on May 1, coming off the bench for the final six minutes of the Heat's Game 7 win over the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the playoffs.
After the 2015–16 season, Johnson became a restricted free agent. On July 6, 2016, he received a four-year, $50 million offer sheet from the Brooklyn Nets. Four days later, the Heat matched the Nets' contract offer, re-signing Johnson. On December 7, 2016, he scored a career-high 27 points in a 103–95 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. He topped that mark on December 20, scoring 32 points—the most any Heat reserve has ever scored in a game—in a 136–130 double overtime loss to the Orlando Magic. The previous Heat scoring record by a reserve was 29 points, by Voshon Lenard in 1999.
On December 30, 2017, Johnson scored 22 of his season-high 31 points in the third quarter of the Heat's 117–111 win over the Magic.
On December 23, 2018, Johnson scored 20 of his 25 points in the third quarter of the Heat's 115–91 win over the Magic.

Phoenix Suns (2019–2020)

On February 6, 2019, Johnson was traded, along with Wayne Ellington, to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for Ryan Anderson. On February 23, he scored a season-high 29 points in a 120–112 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Two days later, he scored 18 points against his former team, the Miami Heat, to help the Suns snap a franchise-record 17-game losing streak to win 124–121. On April 4, 2019, Johnson was ruled out for the rest of the season after missing 10 games with right knee soreness and undergoing arthroscopic surgery. On February 9 2020, Johnson was waived by the Phoenix Suns.

Brooklyn Nets (2020–present)

On June 24, 2020, Johnson signed with the Brooklyn Nets.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

Playoffs

College

Personal life

Johnson is the son of Jennifer and Milton Johnson, and has four siblings: Brandon, Lauren, Logan, and Gabe. His mother is in the United States Air Force. Johnson's biggest hobby off the court is cooking.