"He won't hold his tongue for anyone," Obi Toppin said. "He knows what we need to be successful. Even if it's for a couple days, he's going to make sure his presence is known and make sure our team knows what it takes to get to that level."
Anyone who has been following the Indiana Pacers for the past couple of years will be able to tell you exactly who Toppin is talking about, and exactly why it's so important that he's back in the fold.
That is, of course, the infamous James Johnson, the MMA star who also happened to have an ongoing 16-year career in the NBA. Johnson has played for 11 different franchises in the NBA, along with a couple of stops across different G League affiliates. During that time, he has picked up wisdom that few can rival.
The saying goes that you should fear an old man in a young man's business. Johnson is a clear example of that. He has survived being waived, falling into obscurity, and the transition from a rotation player to a veteran sage. He has seen it all, and that is invaluable.
It's within that quote that we see why Johnson is back on the Pacers, even if it is just a training camp invite, and why Indiana made sure to sign the aging Larry Nance Jr. to play a similar role for the team's morale.
This season will be defined in the egos of the players just as much as it will be by the on-court product. Nance and Johnson will be responsible for keeping that stable.
Gap years are hard to recover from
The Pacers have a difficult challenge ahead of them. While building momentum after a bad season is possible for young teams leaving the rebuild stage, it's much harder to do so after a gap year. Indiana has shown some of their players the role they can have with more touches, only to pull it back once again, keeping it out of reach.
While rebuilds may feel Sisyphian when they fail, gap years are the tragedy of Tantalus. The branch is forever pulled out of reach, and the water retreats away from his attempts to drink it. Jalen Slawson, Quinten Jackson, and Andrew Nembhard all saw their opportunities increase. They will now shrink back to what they were before.
In that way, no one has a harder job than Johnson, who will have to be an advocate to the coaches, asking them to consider more opportunities for the players who cry to him, and a messenger to the players, begging for buy-in even when individuals are being screwed over.
Johnson is not a good enough player to warrant the Pacers' final roster spot. At this point in his career, he is unplayable outside of garbage time.
That leaves just two options: either Johnson joins the coaching staff, or the Pacers deem him worthy of burning that asset, believing that his contributions off court are more valuable than a 15th man.
If Toppin's words are any endorsement, that would be a fair – even commendable – decision.
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