Anthony Johnson is Feeling It

AP Photo/Gregory Smith

Anthony Johnson had done an excellent job filling in as the #2 Point Guard during Jameer Nelson’s absence. In fact, Johnson has been so good that he has received the crunch time minutes in each of the last two games. Johnson followed up his 11-point fourth quarter performance in Phoenix against the Suns Friday night with another excellent all-around game in Monday’s win over the Indiana Pacers. He finished with 13 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds and just 1 turnover.

I caught up with Johnson after the game.

AJ discussed the way the bench played.

“We were a little low in energy tonight. They did a good job of coming out and being aggressive to start off the first quarter and build a big lead and we were just able to chip away. We played great defense in the second quarter and were able to manage a sizeable deficit there at halftime. And then in the fourth quarter, Rashard made a big three, J.J. made a big three, and Vince created and made space, so we were able to pull out a win.”

You’ve been looking for your shot a lot more in these last two games, can you talk about that?

“You know, we have a lot of scorers on the court. We have a lot of shooters so with that being said, guys are staying home and trying to make me finish and make plays on my own so I’m just getting opportunities to create plays for myself and get in the paint and shooting over smaller Point Guards. I’m just trying to take advantage of those opportunities.”

Can you talk about the way you’ve been playing defense lately?

“I can play a little bit of defense. I know when I was younger that was something that I was known for, it was a characteristic people threw on me – being a good, solid defensive player. I think I can still get it done in this league so whenever somebody tries to go one-on-one with me, I just have too much pride to sit there and let somebody score. Pride kicks in when somebody’s trying to embarrass you and score on you, so I have to step up and take care of that.”

You’ve made big plays in the fourth quarter in each of the last two games, how high is your confidence right now?

“It’s sky high. Whenever your team looks to you to finish ballgames and make plays down the stretch, it shows that they have confidence in you. So I’m just trying to respond to the opportunity and the challenges given to me. Normally, you match up against good guys so you just have to step up to their level or higher. I’m just trying to take advantage and not be the weak link on a good ballclub.”