NBL 2023: SEM Phoenix Big Man Daniel Johnson On Adelaide Return, Failed Qatar Move

The big guy revealed his horror stories from a failed stint in Qatar before his return to the 36ers. Daniel Johnson's first employment after his split with Adelaide did not quite pan out as he had imagined it would.

In his interviews with journalists, Daniel Johnson never divulges an excessive amount of information; therefore, when he tells you that his time spent in Adelaide "didn't end one hundred percent the way I wanted it to," you can be sure that he was experiencing a certain degree of dissatisfaction and maybe some hurt.

Time cures all wounds, and six months after a difficult decision was taken about the 13-season great from Adelaide, Johnson has stated that he has made peace with the situation. The club is preparing to retire his No. 21 shirt, along with Darryl Pearce's No. 4, Brett Maher's No. 5, Al Green's No. 15, and Mark Davis's No. 33 jerseys.

According to Johnson, "I discovered a very long time ago that it is a business." "I've moved on from it now, and you remember the good times more than the bad times," she said.

My family is still in Adelaide, and I've been around the area for such a long time that a lot of the guys are really good friends of mine. I have a lot of friends in Adelaide. All of my pals are still in Adelaide.

There is a possibility that the 35-year-old player, who was signed by South East Melbourne as an injury replacement, will only participate in two games for the Phoenix. This is contingent upon Gorjok Gak's ability to recover from a calf injury.

On the other hand, as the old adage goes, everything is possible inevitably occurs, and one of those occurrences will be a matchup against his previous club on Friday night at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

It will be "a little strange" to line up in opposition colors considering the product of Western Australia played 366 games in a Sixers jersey from 2010 to 23. During that time, he averaged an impressive 15.9 points, seven rebounds, 1.8 assists, and shot 35 percent from outside the arc.

"That's the way it works out, but I'm looking forward to going back," he laughed as he recognized a little irony in the situation.

"I'm convinced that it will be a peculiarity. Being a member of the opposing team is a lot different.

It is possible that his search for a new basketball house, which he had not done for more than a decade, is not as peculiar as it may seem.

After signing a contract with Qatar club Al Sadd that was described as "pretty vague," the father of two children boarded a plane to travel to the Middle East.

The sound of the alarm bells didn't take very long to come on.

In spite of the fact that, according to all accounts, it is one of the better clubs in that region, we attempted to obtain a more comprehensive contract, but they just responded by saying, "This is the way contracts work over here."

"The most important thing for me was that I needed a place to stay where I could bring my family and we could all be set up. It was just a little apartment with two bedrooms, nothing too fancy, and nothing out of the ordinary."

"I was just thrown in with the other import in a dodgy apartment from the beginning, and it didn't change," she described her situation.

"There were other really fundamental things, and I thought to myself, 'If it's this difficult to get a place to stay, can you even imagine how difficult it is to get paid?'"

"There is probably a reason why the contracts were so ambiguous; it was a bit of a stitch up," the speaker said.

After a week, it was time to get back on a plane, travel back to Adelaide, and make another attempt at coming up with a solution.

The 212-centimeter offensive beast has been one of the most resilient players in the history of basketball. Over the course of sixteen seasons in the National Basketball League, he has missed only three games.

The reason he believes he still has plenty left in the tank is because of this, and he intends to continue playing for as long as he is still able to move up and down the floor. However, the uncertainty has compelled him to consider what his life may be like if he did not play basketball.

It is his intention to demonstrate that he is still in good shape and capable of making a contribution by using his time spent in Phoenix as an audition for South East Melbourne or another team.

According to him, "This year has been very strange."

"Every time I make a plan, it doesn't really work out, so I'm just going with the flow and hoping that something comes up," she said.

"I'm basically willing to consider anything. We have had a couple contacts with my agent, who is currently speaking with teams located overseas.

“I'm grateful for the opportunity at the Phoenix. I’ve shown now that I’m in shape.”

Adelaide is planning to honor Johnson before the game. Johnson, who enjoys laughing off suggestions of a "DJ bay" of supporters at AEC, is expected to receive a warm welcome, according to Sixers veteran and good friend Mitch McCarron. McCarron just hopes Johnson doesn't wear it out with another classic 20-10 double-double, as he has done so many times while wearing Sixers colors.

McCarron expressed his happiness for him, saying, "I'm happy for him. He gets to keep playing the game he loves." He also mentioned that the audience would recognize him and his contributions to the club, adding that he deserves it. However, he emphasized that the team's ultimate goal is to win the game.

We are pretty good friends, which is why we have kept in touch quite a bit.

"I have no doubt that he will put up a really good screen on me, and then everything will proceed from there."