Assuming the eventual return of DeMarre Carroll (praise be to god), Powell will probably not see much (or any) time in the playoffs. But he's been getting up on guys with extreme regularity. Powell is still very much a rookie, so it's not surprising to see the ups and downs of his offensive game on a day-to-day basis. But an outstanding off-ball defender he is not. Johnson is a solid on-ball defender, both large and quick enough to deal with a variety of attacking players. Alternatively, the Raptors have been playing small teams, rosters with quick guards who deke and dive in and out of the lane and along the perimeter, hunting for space and an open shot. (Johnson managed to hit a three, but he also missed two free throws against Boston that would have tied the game.) Taking the under was the wise bet. This presumably would contribute to him playing a mere seven minutes and 23 seconds this past week. Last we heard Johnson had a sore left Achilles' tendon, and there was some talk of plantar fasciitis. In truth, it can sometimes hard to determine which is worse: to have the thing you want and watch it slip away over a too brief span of time, or to yearn and struggle and never achieve at all. Maybe you spend your days wishing things were different, that perhaps life has passed you by. Maybe you are like Johnson and you're doing something you've always dreamed of doing - even in a reduced capacity.
But there is something inexorable about human life, livelihood, and its ending that we can all grab onto. We're not entirely in a position to relate to Johnson not as professionals at least.
This means Johnson is around, let's say, a dozen years into his basketball life - or, in other words, somehow closer to the end than the beginning. He is now 29 years old and soon to become a free agent.
Before all this he played in high school. He's working on his seventh season as a professional. James Johnson has been in the NBA since he was 22 after a run at Wake Forest from 2007 to 2009. You've made it and you're only around 20 years old. You're promoted after four or five years, and then happily elevated again to the top position in your field. You'd be essentially hired at the minimum legal working age - say, around 14 or so - and groomed for a position that a minuscule few actually get.
Imagine in your line of work the entire run of your career could be summarized in a 15 to 20 year stretch.
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