Deron Williams Confident in Backcourt Partnership With Joe Johnson


Despite the fact that both players are ball-dominating stars, Deron Williams doesn’t envision any problems with playing alongside the man infamously known as “Iso-Joe”. From the NY Daily News: “It was only the second day of training camp, and Deron Williams had already heard enough about chemistry with Joe Johnson that he turned it into a game with the media. ‘I just don’t think we can play together,’ Williams deadpanned on Wednesday. ‘I don’t think it’s going to work. One of us is going to have to go.’ Williams then turned his attention to Johnson across the practice facility. The Nets have already anointed the pair the best backcourt in the NBA, even with Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles. ‘Joe, this ain’t working out, man,’ he yelled. “This ain’t working out.’ Williams eventually answered the question seriously, saying neither he nor Johnson needs to dominate ball to be successful. There are only so many shots to go around, after all, especially with another productive scorer at center in Brook Lopez. But Williams proved his unselfishness during five-plus seasons in Utah, where he was a pick-and-roll point guard who turned Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur into All-Stars. Last season in New Jersey was an aberration, he said, because dominating the ball ‘was the only chance we had to win.’ ‘Everybody talks about we both need the ball in our hands,’ Williams said. ‘But No. 1, in Utah, I didn’t always have the ball in my hands. The system we ran, I’d give it up and get it back at the end of the shot clock. I like coming off screens. So I think we’ll be a great fit.'”