Sports
Amir Johnson
born 1987 · basketball forward, coach
Forward drafted straight out of high school by the Pistons in 2005, who spent four seasons in Detroit learning the game before a long, productive career elsewhere.
- Born
Los Angeles, California
age 39- Birth name
- Amir Jalla Johnson
- Detroit years
- 2005–2009
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Detroit picked Johnson with the 56th overall selection in the 2005 draft, one of the last players to jump directly from high school to the NBA before the league barred the practice. He played sparingly at first, appearing in only three games as a rookie and eight the following season while developing in the minor-league D-League. After re-signing with the Pistons in 2007, he grew into a steady contributor off the bench, playing 124 games over his final two Detroit seasons. He left as a free agent in 2009 and went on to a long career with the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers before moving into coaching.
Highlights
- Drafted 56th overall by the Pistons in 2005, straight out of high school
- Played four seasons in Detroit, 2005–2009
- Re-signed with the Pistons in 2007 on a three-year contract
- Later became an NBA player-development coach
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Played here · 2005–2009
The Palace of Auburn Hills
Demolished · 1988–2020
The Pistons' arena where he developed from a rookie into a steady contributor; demolished in 2020.