Tyler Johnson (basketball)

After going undrafted in the 2014 NBA draft, Johnson joined the Miami Heat for the 2014 NBA Summer League.[2] On August 7, 2014, he signed with the Heat,[3] but was later waived by the team on October 25.[4] On November 3, he was acquired by the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League as an affiliate player of the Heat.[5]

On January 12, 2015, Johnson signed a 10-day contract with the Heat.[6] 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[7] and two days later, he returned to the Skyforce.[8]

Johnson later re-joined the Heat on January 29 as he signed another 10-day contract with the team.[9] On February 8, he signed a two-year deal with the Heat.[10][11] On March 2, he had a season-best game with 26 points and 4 steals in a 115–98 win over the Phoenix Suns.[12] 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.[13] He topped that minutes mark by playing in all 48 minutes of the Heat's season finale win over the Philadelphia 76ers.[14]

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.[15] On December 9, 2015, he scored a season-high 20 points in a loss to the Charlotte Hornets.[16] He later missed eight games during December with a shoulder injury.[17] 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.[18][19] After initially trying to avoid surgery, Johnson ultimately gave into the idea on February 1, 2016,[20] 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.[21] Four days later, the Heat matched the Nets' contract offer, re-signing Johnson.[22] On December 7, 2016, he scored a career-high 27 points in a 103–95 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.[23] 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.[24]

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.[25]

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.[26]

On February 6, 2019, Johnson was traded, along with Wayne Ellington, to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for Ryan Anderson.[27] On February 23, he scored a season-high 29 points in a 120–112 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.[28][29] 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.[30] 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.[31] On February 9, 2020, Johnson was waived by the Suns.[32][33]

On June 24, 2020, Johnson signed with the Brooklyn Nets.[34] On November 27, he re-signed with the Nets.[35] In 39 games played with Brooklyn, he averaged 5.4 points, 2 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in an average of 17 minutes per game. In the Nets' elimination from the NBA playoffs against the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks, Johnson totalled 4 points, 2 rebounds, and 5 assists in a combined 22 minutes of action.[36] Johnson won praise for his personality fit and work with the Nets second unit, but Brooklyn chose not to re-sign him in free agency.[37]

On December 22, 2021, Johnson signed a 10-day contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, via the hardship exemption.[38] He appeared in three games and averaged 3.7 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.[39]

On January 6, 2022, Johnson signed a 10-day contract with the San Antonio Spurs.[39] He appeared in three games, and averaged 2 points, 2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game for the Spurs.

On July 30, 2022, Johnson signed with the Brisbane Bullets in Australia for the 2022–23 NBL season.[40]