Dennis Johnson

Dennis Wayne Johnson ( born September 18, 1954 in Compton, California, † February 22, 2007 in Austin, Texas ) was an American basketball player.

Life

Johnson played on the position of the point guards 1976-1990 in the North American professional league NBA. Johnson began his career with the Seattle SuperSonics, with whom he surprisingly won the NBA Championship against the Washington Bullets in 1979. In the final series, he was named MVP. He is best known, however, especially in his time with the Boston Celtics (1983-1990), when he won at the side of Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish two more NBA championships (1984 and 1986). He is also a five-time NBA Allstar ( 1979-82 and 1985). Johnson was considered a candidate for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, but was not elected on the first ballot in 1999. In 2010 he was however added posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame. He died unexpectedly at the age of 52 of a heart attack after he collapsed unconscious in a practice match at the Austin Convention Center.