has Amir Johnson made a difference?

[SHAQATTACK]

He is now considered the highest paid player on the team.   

Has he made a difference for this years squad?

Beats the heck of butterfingers bass

[Greyman]

He has done a job and done it reasonably well. He may still be only part of this season's plan though. I feel like it is a 50/50 chance that he is still around next season, depending on who comes in. I expect he will be a back up if he is still part of the setup.

[Irish Stew]

so with the overwhelming positive response, pick up the team option for next season?

If not as good as I thought, he has been useful, so, sure, why not? The only reason would be if you're able to bring in two big contracts like Horford and Durant, so you would need every dollar of cap space, a remote possibility at best.

[chambers]

He has had a positive impact being on the floor with Sully and Olynyk and helping them on defense.
He's helped make us a top 5 defensive team and he's an excellent defender if you look at his advanced stats.

His contract is irrelevant because he was signed to that amount to help in a trade for a star.
If we sign Horford, he will probably be gone next season.

He's here for two reasons:
-Play a few minutes at the starting 4/5 and defend.
-go out in a big trade for a star as an expiring team option.

[Celtics4ever]

He has had a positive impact being on the floor with Sully and Olynyk and helping them on defense.
He's helped make us a top 5 defensive team and he's an excellent defender if you look at his advanced stats.

I think he single biggest impact, is that he makes Sully more viable to play because he can help him so much.   Sully by himself on D is a liability.   You need a guy to cover this lack of lateral speed, although he is fine pushing guys down low, he is not a rim protector.   Amir, helps with this a bit.

[Vox_Populi]

so with the overwhelming positive response, pick up the team option for next season?

Almost by default because the market is slim and there is a ton of cash to spend by teams.

The one issue I have with him is that he can't sustain a lot of minutes.  We need depth behind a player like that, so we will need to retain Zeller as well.  While Amir may be "cheap" at $12 mil, Zeller will certainly get a hefty raise so in effect we are paying more for Amir.

i hope i never see Zeller again in green after this season.

Would some desperate team offer Zeller, Aron Baynes money?

[chambers]

He has had a positive impact being on the floor with Sully and Olynyk and helping them on defense.
He's helped make us a top 5 defensive team and he's an excellent defender if you look at his advanced stats.

I think he single biggest impact, is that he makes Sully more viable to play because he can help him so much.   Sully by himself on D is a liability.   You need a guy to cover this lack of lateral speed, although he is fine pushing guys down low, he is not a rim protector.   Amir, helps with this a bit.

Sully has proven this season that he is not a liability on D. The numbers prove this.
He has the best opponents points per possession and the best defensive real+/- on the team other than Smart. He has incredibly fast hands and uses his positioning and big ass, not allowing his opponents to get to their sweet spot around the rim. I dunno what else he can do to prove to you that he's not a liability. He's never been a liability.
This is like groundhog day except the numbers support him even more now after playing with a half decent defender next to him all year.

The truth is that Jared Sullinger is a good defender. The numbers say he's actually VERY good.

[Rosco917]

Overall I like Amir's game, I wish he were bit more consistent. He tends to disappear for weeks at at time.
He is a solid defender, a decent rebounder, and rim protector. I like his jump hook too, it should be utilized more. 

I believe he's made a negligible difference.

[TheTruthFot18]

- Amir is the only player on this team to shoot above .500 (by a wide margin. Next player is Zeller at .490 and KO at .461).

- Only player to average 1.0 blocks or more. Next player is Sully at 0.7.

- He's third in W/S for this team ahead of guys like AB, KO, Turner, and Smart.

- Highest Ortg (outside of Mickey but we won't count that) as well as being tied for the second best Drtg (Sully is #1 and again we won't count Mickey).

- He passes the basic eye test. Hustles every game and is liked by everyone.

Yes he made a difference. He certainly exceeded my expectations which were basically paying $12 mil for a Brandon Bass replacement. 

[Evantime34]

I like Amir, I think he is really going to be a factor in the C's playoff run. It does concern me though, that he is often not in the game at the end. I would welcome an upgrade at his position, though.

Whether we pick up Amir's option will be dependent on the other moves the team makes. If we make a trade on draft night for a max level player Amir is probably a part of that trade. If Horford and another star come here then it might not be a bad idea to decline his option and free up extra space.

[LooseCannon]

Whether we pick up Amir's option will be dependent on the other moves the team makes. If we make a trade on draft night for a max level player Amir is probably a part of that trade. If Horford and another star come here then it might not be a bad idea to decline his option and free up extra space.

If the Celtics agree to a trade on draft night for a max contract player, it will probably not be officially consummated until after the July moratorium when the deal can be made using cap space with no need to match salaries.

[PhoSita]

I think he has made a difference.  The Celts needed somebody who could fill the role Amir has occupied this year.  A long, mobile big with decent height who can defend multiple positions, stretch the floor a little, set picks, roll to the rim, catch and finish.  He does a lot of the same things Bass did, except he's not so undersized and he's a much better passer.

That said, Amir is on the decline, and his rebounding overall is not great.  What the Celts need is somebody younger who can do a much better job filling that role.  Similar skillset, but better overall skills and talent, with the ability to play 30+ minutes on a regular basis.

Too bad they didn't draft Bobby Portis .... though perhaps Mickey can step into the role.

[manl_lui]

his defense inside has definitely made a difference. I remember I was confused when Danny handed out that contract to Amir. But I like what I am seeing so far.

[passesofftodj]

I certainly like him on the team far better than Brandon Bass.

[celts55]

As little as a few weeks ago I would have said no, but he seems to be playing much better the last week or two.
He's been more aggressive, consistent, and active.
Maybe I'm wrong, bet he appears to be a lot better recently.