Dennis Johnson
*Dennis Johnson was born on this date in 1954. He was a Black basketball player and coach.
Born in San Pedro and raised in Compton, California, he played in college at Pepperdine and was drafted by the Seattle Supersonics in 1976. Johnson was traded to Phoenix in 1980 and then to Boston in 1983. He averaged 14.1 points and 5.0 assists. When he retired, he was the 11th player in NBA history to total 15,000 points and 5,000 assists. Johnson made one all-NBA first team and one-second team. He made the all-defensive first team six times, including five consecutive seasons (1979-83).
He was hired as interim head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers in 2002, replacing Alvin Gentry, but was fired after an 8–16 record. In 2004, he became the first head coach for the Florida Flame in the Development League but was fired after finishing the season in the last place. He then became the head coach of the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League.
On February 22, 2007, at the Austin Convention Center, Johnson collapsed while playing a pick-up game of basketball during practice. He could not be revived and was later pronounced dead.
