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George T. Johnson

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George T. Johnson
Personal information
Born (1948-12-18) December 18, 1948 (age 75)
Tylertown, Mississippi, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High schoolGulledge (Tylertown, Mississippi)
CollegeDillard (1966–1970)
NBA draft1970: 5th round, 79th overall pick
Selected by the Chicago Bulls
Playing career1972–1986
PositionCenter / power forward
Number52, 43
Career history
19721977Golden State Warriors
1977Buffalo Braves
19771980New Jersey Nets
19801982San Antonio Spurs
1982–1983Atlanta Hawks
1984–1985New Jersey Nets
1985–1986Seattle SuperSonics
Career highlights and awards
Career statistics
Points4,369 (4.8 ppg)
Rebounds5,887 (6.5 rpg)
Blocks2,082 (2.5 bpg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

George Thomas Johnson (born December 18, 1948) is an American retired professional basketball player. A 6'11" power forward/center born in Tylertown, Mississippi and from Dillard University, he played in 13 National Basketball Association (NBA) seasons (1972–1983; 1984–1986) as a member of the Golden State Warriors, the Buffalo Braves, the New Jersey Nets, the San Antonio Spurs, the Atlanta Hawks, and the Seattle SuperSonics.

Johnson was a key reserve on the Warriors team that won the NBA Championship in 1975, and he grabbed 5,887 rebounds in his career. Johnson led the NBA in blocked shots per game three times, led the NBA in disqualifications in 1977–78 with 20, and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 1980–81. He blocked at least 10 shots in a game six times during his NBA career.

Johnson recorded the first five-by-five in NBA history, and is one of only twelve players to accomplish one. On March 26, 1978, he had 15 points, 18 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals and 7 blocks in a 118–104 victory over the Washington Bullets.[1][2]

In 1981–82, Johnson started 62 games for the Spurs, helping them win the Midwest Division championship and reach the Western Conference finals. After San Antonio was swept by the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers in a series in which Johnson was badly outplayed by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Spurs coach Stan Albeck determined the team was seriously deficient in the low post. Albeck sought a premier center, and got it by trading for Chicago Bulls All-Star Artis Gilmore, signaling the end of Johnson's time in San Antonio.

Inspired by his teammate Rick Barry, Johnson shot his free throws underhanded.[3]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
 †  Won an NBA championship  *  Led the league

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1972–73 Golden State 56 6.2 .410 .412 2.5 0.1 1.6
1973–74 Golden State 66 19.6 .483 .551 7.9 1.1 0.5 1.9 6.1
1974–75 Golden State 82 17.5 .476 .659 7.0 0.8 0.4 1.7 4.4
1975–76 Golden State 82 21.3 .484 .673 7.6 1.0 0.6 2.1 4.9
1976–77 Golden State 39 15.3 .487 .806 5.4 0.7 0.4 1.9 4.4
1976–77 Buffalo 39 27.1 .448 .687 10.3 2.0 0.6 2.7 7.6
1977–78 New Jersey 81 29.8 .395 .719 9.6 1.4 1.0 3.4* 8.7
1978–79 New Jersey 78 26.4 .427 .761 7.9 1.1 0.9 3.2 6.6
1979–80 New Jersey 81 26.2 .457 .000 .706 7.4 2.1 0.7 3.2 7.2
1980–81 San Antonio 82 23.6 .473 .734 7.3 1.1 0.6 3.4* 5.0
1981–82 San Antonio 75 62 21.0 .467 .672 6.1 1.1 0.3 3.1* 3.0
1982–83 Atlanta 37 0 12.5 .439 .737 3.2 0.5 0.3 1.6 1.7
1984–85 New Jersey 65 0 12.3 .532 1.000 .815 2.8 0.3 0.3 1.2 1.6
1985–86 Seattle 41 0 6.4 .522 .688 1.5 0.3 0.1 0.9 0.9
Career 904 62 20.0 .451 .500 .694 6.5 1.0 0.5 2.5 4.8

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1973 Golden State 9 5.0 .400 .250 1.6 0.3 1.4
1975 Golden State 17 18.9 .571 .593 7.4 0.9 0.5 2.4 5.2
1976 Golden State 13 20.1 .574 .737 6.7 1.3 1.1 1.8 5.8
1979 New Jersey 2 35.0 .667 .333 12.5 1.0 1.0 3.5 14.5
1981 San Antonio 7 23.6 .462 .700 9.0 0.9 0.4 2.3 4.4
1982 San Antonio 9 19.4 .500 .600 5.1 1.3 0.7 1.7 1.2
1983 Atlanta 1 0 4.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Career 59 0 17.7 .551 .618 6.1 0.9 0.7 2.0 4.2

See also

References

  1. ^ "George Johnson posted 15 points versus the Washington Bullets on March 26, 1978. StatMuse". statmuse. statmuse. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  2. ^ New Jersey Nets at Washington Bullets Box Score, March 26, 1978 | Basketball-Reference.com
  3. ^ O'Connor, Ian (June 3, 1995), "Barry Cries Foul Has Underhanded Plan For Shaq", New York Daily News[permanent dead link]