Where’s AJ?

by Joseph Vecsey I don’t think I’ve ever disagreed with a coach more that’s gotten his team to the NBA finals. Now maybe I wouldn’t be able to write this if Orlando was up 3-1 (which, admittedly, could have happened), but I feel the players who get you to the Finals should play. And for the Magic, one of those players is Anthony Johnson. As you probably know, Johnson—who has yet to play a second in the Finals after appearing in every single previous postseason game Orlando had played—was demoted once it was decided to bring Jameer Nelson back into the rotation. “I kinda saw it coming so it wasn’t a surprise. I worked the whole year, helped the team to where we are, and then I’m told I’m not playing anymore. You know I wasn’t happy to hear that. But it wouldn’t have done any good to scream about it, or argue with Stan or cause a disruption. So I did the only thing I could do: be a professional and accept it…and stay ready in case the team needs me,” Johnson said. Given this, I think ...