Joe Johnson Almost Won It For Brooklyn, But LeBron Got Him In The End

There are a lot of people you can assign some blame to for the Nets’ 4-1 series loss to the Heat in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, but Joe Johnson isn’t one of them. The hulking, 6-8 shooting guard gets criticized for being overpaid, but he dropped 34 points in Brooklyn’s elimination game in Miami. In the end, though, LeBron James and the Heat thwarted his efforts.

Joe poured in 34 points — 24 in the second half — on 65 percent shooting and 3-for-6 from 3-point range. He was fantastic and the biggest reason the Nets had a one-point lead with inside of a minute left last night.

Except LeBron snuffed out his long 2-pointer with 1:30 left in the game…

and Johnson got stripped by Ray Allen and James again on the final possession with the Nets down two and just nine seconds remaining.

At the end, the Heat closed “Broooooklyn” out, but Joe Johnson did almost enough to push the series back to the Barclays Center. Who knows where the Nets goes from here with a bloated payroll and a ton of veterans on their last legs, but the low-key Johnson certainly earned at least some of the $21,466,718 he made this season.

(GIFs via reddit)

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